Angel Eyes
by Mister Cynical
Summary: Several years ago the Third Impact nearly wiped mankind from the face of the Earth. Misato Katsuragi thought it took Shinji Ikari away forever, but now he's back and he hasn't been idle for all these years.
1. Chapter 1

Shinji Ikari watched as the countryside whipped past his window as the bus bounced its way down the cracked and pothole-ridden road

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter One:

Shinji Ikari watched as the countryside whipped past his window as the bus bounced its way down the cracked and pothole-ridden road. The scenery outside was one of unbroken forests and grassy meadows. It was amazingly beautiful after having seen only war zones for the past several years. "Hey Mister?" Shinji turned and saw the young boy who had been sitting in the seat in front of him had turned around to stare at him.

"Yes?"

"What happened to your eye?"

"Ichigo!" the boy's mother cried. "Don't ask strangers questions like that." Shinji chuckled and tugged at the plain black eye patch over his left eye.

"It's fine," he stated to the woman. He turned back to the boy. "I got into a fight with a lady." The boy's eyes widened.

"Really?" he asked in an awe-struck voice.

"Yeah," Shinji replied seriously. "Never fight with a woman. They don't fight fair." The boy's mother chuckled as Ichigo sat down quietly. She turned more fully in her seat and offered her hand.

"I'm Marie."

"Shinji," Shinji replied as he shook her hand.

"Good story," Marie commented. "I haven't seen someone shut him up that fast in a long time."

"It wasn't a story," Shinji stated truthfully. The grin dropped off Marie's face and her eyes widened just like her son's. Shinji laughed at the similarities. They hadn't spoken since they had left Sendai, but apparently several hours with only a young child to talk to wore on a person's nerves. "So, are you staying in Tokyo-3 or just passing through?"

"We're staying there," Marie stated. "My husband just got a job there. He went on ahead while Ichigo and I packed up back in Sapporo. What about you?"

"I'm staying in Tokyo-3 too," Shinji replied. "I used to live there and I'm trying to find a few old friends I haven't seen in a long time."

"Where have you been?" Marie asked.

"Europe," Shinji stated. Marie's eyes widened.

"Did you see any of those new Angels?" she asked.

"No," Shinji replied quickly.

"It makes my skin crawl," Marie stated. "I thought it was bad when they were hundred-meter tall monsters, but the thought that they can look like anybody now is horrifying."

"What are the Angels?" Ichigo asked, finally overcoming his shock.

"The Angels were humans who came back from the Third Impact as monsters," Marie explained. "They've been attacking Europe to stop the world from coming together again."

"Oh."

"Yeah," Shinji agreed, a strange feeling welling up in him. "That's mostly happening in mainland Europe, Germany especially. I was in the United Kingdom." Marie seemed to pick up on his change of attitude.

"I'm sorry. Did I bring up something bad?"

"It's nothing," Shinji replied. He forced a smile for her. Marie nodded awkwardly and sat back down. Shinji returned to staring out the window. Derelict buildings were beginning to appear amongst the trees, the first signs that this had all once been infill between Tokyo-3 and the next city along, what was once, a major thoroughfare road. It was amazing how fast nature moved to reclaim its territory once man was gone.

Shinji glanced at his watch. They still had a few hours to go. He leaned up against the window. Following through on poorly planned out, fairly rash life decisions was much more tiring then he had though.

(:ii:)

Shinji adjusted the strap of his duffel bag and stared at the sun rising over the decimated city of Berlin, a city he had spent many years in. The colors of the sunrise were actually kind of pretty, he had never really noticed before. He took it all in, everything he hadn't paid attention to before, for a minute before reaffirming his decision. "Fuck this place." He started walking, walking away from this place, away from himself, and away from everything that had mattered to him for the past several years. It wasn't long before he could feel someone's presence stalking him. "Are you being that loud to humor me?"

"Where do you think you're going?" Shinji stopped and turned to stare at the redhead standing behind him.

"Away," he answered.

"You can't leave Shinji. I won't let you."

"It's over Asuka," he replied as he adjusted the strap of the heavy bag still slung over his shoulder. He needed something to do with his hands. If he had had nothing, he was sure he would try to attack the redhead more out of habit than anything. "You won. Congratulations." The German redhead looked absolutely furious as her blue eyes flashed crimson and her pupils turned diamond shaped.

"It can't end this way. I won't let it."

"Neither of us has a say in it," Shinji replied. "We can't carry on with me like this and you know it." Asuka was trembling now.

"You can't leave me!" she shrieked, pulling back her hand to strike him. Shinji's remaining eye slipped shut. So this was how it ended, was it? It seemed right. All the years they had spent trying to kill each other, to die by her hand just seemed as it should be. The killing blow never came and Shinji opened his eye. Asuka's fist had dropped and there were tears in her eyes. She slammed into him and clutched at his shirt as she began to sob. "I didn't mean for this to happen." Her blue eyes looked up into his. "You have to believe me."

"What did you think was going to happen?" Shinji asked.

"I just wanted to get rid of the last bit of her," Asuka moaned miserably. "I could always see her there and I hated it."

"Well now you don't have to see her or me," Shinji stated. He took the redhead by her shoulders and pushed her back gently. "Goodbye Asuka."

"You're really going to just leave this, leave me?" she demanded. "You aren't my Shinji! My Shinji would never walk away from me! My Shinji is a warrior, you aren't him; you can't be!"

"Not anymore." Shinji turned his back on the woman he had tried to kill and almost been killed by a hundred thousand times over. It was surprisingly easy. Maybe he was hoping that she would attack and put him out of his misery.

The attack never came. That figured. Asuka always knew just what he wanted and than did the exact opposite.

(:ii:)

Shinji jerked awake and looked around the bus sharply. He wasn't used to being awakened by other people. Hell, he wasn't too used to sleeping. "Are you okay?" He glanced up and saw Marie looking back at him over her seat.

"Nightmares," he replied truthfully.

"Does it happen often?" Marie asked.

"Too often for my tastes."

"What are they about?" Shinji felt his eyebrow rise and Marie had the good grace to blush and look embarrassed. "Sorry. I'm a psychiatrist by trade. Sometimes I can be a little nosy."

"Its fine," Shinji stated. He wondered what she would say if he told the truth. "They're about the woman who did this to me," he stated, touching his eye patch.

"Were you two close?"

"Extremely," Shinji stated. That was true enough. He and Asuka had been close.

"Lovers?"

"No," he replied. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"Sorry."

"That's fine."

(:ii:)

Misato Katsuragi scowled as she shuffled towards the front door. Whoever was out there obviously didn't know that she was not to be bothered before noon. She glanced at her watch. They still have another ten minutes before they could bug her. "Who is it?" she demanded.

"I'm looking for Misato Katsuragi," a man replied from the other side of the door. "She used to live here a long time ago."

"She still does!" Misato snapped. "You're talking to her, now who the hell are you?"

"An old friend," the man replied. Misato's scowl deepened and she ripped the door open.

"Well then, look here friend. . ." she trailed off as she stared at the man. He was quite a few inches taller than her with short black hair and an eye patch over his left eye. For the life of her, Misato couldn't figure out why she had stopped until she saw his remaining eye. The bright blue orb was so familiar it took her breath away. He stared down at her and smiled.

"Hey Misato." Misato's eyes widened as she finally recognized him. "You're looking very good."

"Shinji!" Whatever he had been expecting, being tackled to the floor by a shrieking woman wasn't it.

"It's okay," Shinji stated soothingly as he awkwardly wrapped big, warm arms around her and held her as she sobbed and clutched him tightly.

"Where have you been?" Misato wailed. "After the Impact, everybody started coming back. I kept waiting and waiting for you, but you never came. You never came back Shinji!"

"But I'm here now," Shinji replied. "Calm down." He climbed to his feet and brought her along with him. "What do you say I make us some breakfast?"

"That sounds great," Misato sniffled.

(:ii:)

Misato watched quietly as Shinji moved easily through the kitchen. She liked this new model Ikari, oh yes she did. The old one had been fine, but she did enjoy this version's updated chassis. "Where have you been Shinji?"

"There were things I needed to take care of," Shinji replied.

"What things?" Misato pressed.

"Things I'd rather not discuss," Shinji answered. He turned off the stove and walked to the table balancing a tray carrying a massive Western-style breakfast in his gloved hands. "Time's been very good to you, Misato." Misato's tactician side stomped down ruthlessly on her feminine vain side.

"Why didn't you ever contact me?" she demanded. "I was worried sick about you for years. I tried to find you, but no one had any clue where you were. Do you know how hard it is to hide from NERV?"

"I managed to do it when I was fourteen," Shinji commented.

"They still caught you," Misato pointed out crossly. This answer dodging was getting most annoying.

"Only cause I slowed down," Shinji replied somewhat flippantly. "As for why I never called, I just got too wrapped up in things."

"Ah yes, these things you'd rather not discuss," Misato commented dryly as Shinji divided the meal onto two plates. "Do you know how hard it was on me, Shinji? I thought something horrible must have happened to you. To you, Asuka, and Rei." Her eyes widened as the plate Shinji had been holding hit the table, sending sausage rolling everywhere.

"God damn it," Shinji growled as he chased the linked meats down before any could wind up on the floor.

"Did these things have something to do with Asuka and. . ."

"Enough!" Shinji roared, making Misato jump in surprise. He turned on her and, for a moment, Misato could have sworn that his remaining eye was purple. It, if it was real, was gone almost before she could comprehend what she was seeing, or if she had seen anything at all. "I asked you to leave it," Shinji growled, his tone suddenly quite sharp and demanding. "I came here to see you, Misato, not to get a God damned third degree, understand?"

"I'm sorry," Misato managed to squeak. In an instant Shinji seemed to shrink back on himself. He walked quickly to the fridge and grabbed a dozen beers. Neither of them felt like bringing up the fact that there was only one fridge now. He sat down heavily across from her and opened one can. The silence in the room felt like it was suffocating Misato. "I'm really sorry, Shinji." The younger man took a deep breath and sipped his beer.

"Just drop it," he ordered again, much weaker than the first time. "I don't want to think about any of it. I just want to be here and now with you not there in the past with them." With that said he tucked into his meal. Misato felt her cheeks burn at the wording to his statement. She felt the sudden desire to do something she hadn't done in a long time.

"So you want to be with me now, eh?" she asked. "My bed isn't very big, but I don't see anything wrong with using the kitchen table as a multi-tasker." Shinji gagged and coughed roughly. Misato grinned. She still had it. "I guess I can be mad at you later if you want to go have a role in the sack now."

"Misato!" The older woman broke down in a fit of giggles, the angry silence of only a few minutes ago a thing of the past. "You never change, do you?"

"Not when I can help it!"

"Speaking of changing and helping it," Shinji began, "did you get a face life?"

"No!" Misato shrieked.

"Tummy tuck?" Shinji pressed before Misato could properly express her anger.

"You little. . ."

"Boob job?"

"These are all mine!" Misato roared, pulling down the neckline of the tank top that she wore to sleep in. That quite effectively cut off Shinji's line of questioning. It was several more seconds before Misato realized exactly what she was doing. "Wah!"

"Meh," Shinji grunted and returned to eating.

"Meh?" Misato wailed, her vain side beginning to hyperventilate. "What do you mean 'meh'?"

"What do you want me to say?" Shinji asked. "Nice boobs? It's not like it's the first time I've seen a pair." He paused and thought about that for a moment. "Although, they might have been the first pair I ever saw. I seem to recall you flashing me when I first came to live with you."

"That was an accident!"

"Sure."

"It was!" Misato insisted.

"Mm hmm," Shinji hummed as he returned to his eating. Misato pouted and glared at Shinji for a few seconds before the food in front of her simply became too tempting.

(:ii:)

Ritsuko Akagi paused and stared at the door in front of her. After a moment of deliberation she carefully pressed the side of her head to the door. Yes, no doubt about it. Misato was laughing and very hard too. The door opened suddenly and Ritsuko cursed as she stumbled into the apartment and slammed into something solid. "Listening at the door is rude, you know?" Ritsuko looked up and gawked at the man staring down at her. "Staring is rude too."

"Sorry!" Ritsuko yelped as she leapt back. For a moment, just a moment, she thought the man was Commander Ikari.

"How did you know she was there?" Misato asked.

"I just know these kinds of things," the man replied as he closed the door and made his way over to the kitchen table to grab a beer. "You want one?"

"Isn't it a little early for alcohol?" Ritsuko asked.

"Never too early," the man replied.

"I raised him well," Misato replied fondly.

"Is this a bad time?" Ritsuko asked. Misato's previous statement hit her like a sack of potatoes. "Wait, raised?" She spun and stared at the man. "Shinji?"

"Yo," the man replied. He tossed her a beer. She caught it and knocked it back before collapsing onto the couch next to Misato.

"Shinji?" she repeated.

"Me Shinji," the man greeted. "You Doc Akagi. Needle lady. Cat lady. Make-kid-wait-in-fucking-test-tube-for-hours lady." He sat in the easy chair across from them. "Now that we have firmly established our identities, how have you been Doctor Akagi?"

"Just fine, Shinji," Ritsuko replied absently as she studied the man carefully. There was no mistaking it. He was either an older Shinji or a younger Gendo. Of course, with all the oddness that had come after the Third Impact, she couldn't rule out the later as a possibility. "When did you arrive?"

"A few hours ago," Shinji replied.

"Where have you been?" Ritsuko asked after a moment. "You've been gone for years, Shinji. I figured that you had just decided not to come back like so many did."

"I didn't get a say in the matter," Shinji replied quietly as he stared down at his beer.

"Everyone got a choice," Ritsuko replied. "After the Third Impact, if an individual had strong individualistic traits and a will to return, they came back from the LCL. Japan, with its cultural placement of importance on the group rather than the individual, had one of the lowest return rates. Western countries such as the UK, Germany, and the US had much higher percentages with the US having sixty percent of its population returning."

"You think you understand Third Impact," Shinji commented absently. "You don't know a God damned thing, Doc." Ritsuko scowled and Misato sighed. The raven haired woman had long known that the fastest way to draw the blond into an argument was to tell her that she knew nothing about the topic at hand.

"Why don't you enlighten me?" Ritsuko gritted out.

"You don't know because you aren't meant to know," Shinji stated.

"And you are?" Ritsuko demanded.

"Yes, I am." Ritsuko was rather taken aback by the matter-of-fact answer. "I wish I wasn't, but I am."

"I see," she replied. She turned back to Misato. "I just came by the check on you. I really do have to be going, Penny just had kittens."

"That's fine," Misato replied.

"It's good to see that you're well," Ritsuko added cautiously as she rose and shook Shinji's hand. The dark-haired man nodded agreeably.

"If it wouldn't be a problem," he began, "please don't tell anyone that you've seen me."

"Hiding from someone?" Ritsuko asked.

"Yes and mentioning me would only get you in serious trouble."

"Alright," Ritsuko replied. "Come by the Geo-Front tomorrow and I'll check out your eye if you'd like. It looks recent."

"That's not necessary," Shinji stated.

"He'll be there," Misato corrected.

(:ii:)

Misato frowned as she watched Ritsuko walk somewhat stiffly out of the apartment. She heard the door open and close and turned to Shinji. "Don't tell her she doesn't know something. It really pisses her off."

"So I gathered," Shinji replied as he sipped his beer. "I don't need a checkup."

"No, but you're getting one," Misato replied. Shinji stared at her for a moment and checked his watch.

"I'm afraid that I must be going."

"It's still early!" Misato protested. She knew it was stupid, but she was terrified that if Shinji left her sight, he would disappear again. Hell, she was having a hard time just believing that this wasn't all a dream.

"I have to find somewhere to stay," Shinji replied. "I don't know how late the rental offices stay open."

"Stay with me!" Misato exclaimed quickly.

"I'd hate to impose. . ."

"You're staying here if I have to tie you down," Misato interrupted. She saw one of Shinji's eyebrows rise and the corners of his lips quirk upwards.

"How very. . .kinky," he commented. "I'm not entirely sure we're ready for that particular step in our relationship." Misato quickly saw a way to turn the tides.

"Is that a 'maybe later'?" she asked slyly.

"Sure." Misato giggled and nearly tackled the taller man as she threw her arms around his neck, realizing that even on tiptoes she barely came to his chin.

"It's great having you home," she stated as she felt his arms wrap securely around her waist. It was getting hard to convince her body that the fact that he was much younger than her was a problem.

"It's great to be. . .home," Shinji replied.

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Well, I think I've done some pretty good drama. Now I figured I'd give romance a shot, real romance not harem orgies. What? What's with that look? Why are you laughing? You know what? Fuck you! Let this abomination upon all things Cynical commence!

Alright, on a side note, don't look for updates to this one any time soon. I only threw this up because I had nothing else and I always give you guys something.


	2. Chapter 2

I don't own anything

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Two:

Misato yawned and rolled over in her bed. She stared at the clock on her bedside table and frowned. It was ten in the morning and she was awake. Why was she awake? For that matter, why did she feel so excited? The scent of something cooking assaulted her nose and she bolted upright. That was it. Shinji was back!

Misato bounced to her feet and ran out of her room to see her former charge standing over the stove. He was wearing a pair of blue jeans and only a pair of blue jeans. Misato was certainly not about to complain. "Morning Shinji."

"Morning," the man returned in his deep, rough voice that Misato was coming to love. He took the pan he had been watching off the stove and set it on one of the inactive burners as he hunted through the cupboards for plates. He found them and walked back to the table. Misato found her gaze immediately drawn to the pendant hanging from his neck.

"You kept it."

"Pardon?"

"My cross," Misato stated quietly. "You kept it." Shinji glanced down at his necklace as he set the plates down.

"Of course I did," he replied. He reached up to take it off. "Do you want it back?"

"No!" Shinji's hands froze and Misato blushed at her outburst. "You keep it Shinji." He nodded and walked back to the stove to get what he had been cooking.

"You know," he began, "I seem to recall you making a promise when you gave me this necklace." Misato's eyes widened as she realized what he was talking about.

"It seemed like the thing to say at the time," she replied weakly. Shinji laughed at her and loaded her plate with eggs, bacon, and toast. As he handed it to her, Misato noticed a strange circular scar on his palm. "What happened to your hand?"

"What?" Misato took the plate and studied the mark more carefully. She turned his hand over and found a matching one on the back. "Oh, that. It's noting." He extracted his hand carefully and reached for another plate, revealing an identical mark on his right hand.

"Oh my God, Shinji."

"It's nothing," Shinji repeated dismissively.

"Being crucified is nothing?" Misato demanded. Shinji paused slightly at her wording and Misato's eyes widened. She peeked over the edge of the table and stared at the marks on the tops of his bare feet. He finished with his plate and turned to retrieve a couple beers from the fridge. "Shinji?"

"Yeah?"

"You said that you knew about Third Impact," Misato stated. She saw Shinji hesitate slightly. He quickly regained his composure and brought the cans to the table. "All anyone remembers is seeing someone they cared for and then waking up on the beach naked. All that stuff Ritsuko was going on about is only a theory. What happened, Shinji?"

"Are you sure you want to know?" Shinji asked. Misato thought about that for a moment before nodding. "All of your AT fields were dissolved and you were assimilated." It was pretty much the answer she had been expecting, even if she didn't full understand what he meant.

"I see." She frowned as she thought about how Shinji had said that. "We were assimilated, but not you?"

"Someone had to remain," Shinji replied. "Someone had to choose. Don't ask. You really don't want to know about it." Misato opened her beer and drank it to give herself time to think about what to say next.

"You have a lot of secrets Shinji," she stated finally. "Keeping them all bottled up inside isn't a good thing."

"So I've been told," Shinji commented neutrally. Misato considered her next words carefully, the memory of the last time she had pressed him about his past still clear in her mind.

"I'm here if you ever want to talk." Shinji glanced up and stared at her for a moment in a cold, doubtful manner. His expression softened as he met her eyes and he smiled.

"Thanks."

(:ii:)

"This isn't necessary," Shinji stated again.

"Quit being such a tough guy," Misato ordered as she punched him in the arm. She knocked on the door in front of them.

"Come in!" Ritsuko called. Misato pushed it open and led Shinji inside.

"Reporting for his check up!" Misato cheered as she tugged the pensive Ikari towards the examining table.

"Alright," Ritsuko replied without turning from what she was working on. "Please remove your eye patch. I'll be right with you." Misato smiled as she saw Shinji shoot a glance at her.

"Don't worry," she prodded, "I'm a big tough soldier. I won't run out of here squealing like a little girl with worms in her hair."

"I seem to recall snakes having that effect," Ritsuko commented. Misato turned sharply on her oldest friend.

"You never mentioned how they got there," she growled.

"And you never mentioned how my underwear ended up for sale on the campus message board," Ritsuko shot back. Misato winced and glance at Shinji, but he just chuckled. "Don't you laugh Ikari, you're only encouraging her. Please take off your shirt as well."

"Alright." Misato tried really hard to not to blatantly gawk at her former charge. Yes she had seen him shirtless this morning, but his naked torso was still quite a magnificent send up to the male form. Ritsuko finally turned and walked forward.

"Your eye patch please." Shinji again glanced at Misato and carefully pulled off his patch. Misato was quite proud of how well she hid her shudder. She had seen plenty of war wounds, but this was different. She had noticed the four long scars radiating from his eye on his forehead and the single scar beneath his eye, running up his cheek. At the time, she had thought nothing of them, but with the eye patch removed, there was only one explanation for his eye.

"Interesting," Ritsuko commented clinically. "How did you loose it?"

"I had a disagreement with someone." Those words confirmed it for Misato. Someone had plucked Shinji's eye out of its socket.

"Who?"

"A woman," Shinji stated with a chuckle. Ritsuko checked the knot of scar tissue carefully.

"It's well on its way to healing," she stated as she pulled on a stethoscope and pressed it against Shinji's chest. "Breathe in." Shinji breathed in and, on her orders, let it out his breath slowly. Ritsuko quickly repeated it against his back and than took his pulse. "Everything seems to be doing well. You're certainly in very good shape."

"I know," Shinji replied. Ritsuko ignored him and turned back to her bench to retrieve something.

"Hold out your finger."

"What's that?" Shinji asked as the blond advanced on him.

"I just need a sample of your blood." Shinji withdrew his hand sharply and Ritsuko frowned.

"What for?" he demanded.

"I'm going to check for Blue Patterns," Ritsuko stated. "Since you're such an expert on the Third Impact, I'm sure you know that some people returned with Blue Patterns just like the Angels."

"What of them?" Shinji asked.

"They're a threat that must be identified," Ritsuko stated as she eyed him coldly. "Please hold out your finger."

"Why are they a threat?" Shinji pressed.

"They aren't human," Ritsuko stated. "They are powerful, dangerous, and apparently hold great animosity towards mankind, Shinji, or maybe you haven't heard about what's happening in Europe. Please hold out your hand." Misato could literally feel the tension in the air.

"I take it this is the real reason for the exam?" Shinji murmured as he finally held out his hand and Ritsuko pricked his finger. "And who's to say who the bad guy is in Europe?"

"As a human being, I say the Angels are the bad guys," Ritsuko replied as she stared at his finger. "Coloring is normal at least," she murmured. She pressed a small strip of paper against the crimson dot welling from the tiny wound and than fed it into the device she held. It seemed to take forever. "You don't have any Blue Patterns." Misato let out the breath she hadn't noticed she was holding.

"I see," Shinji replied as he eyed the machine with an unreadable expression for what felt like a long time while licking his wounded finger.

"Shinji?" Misato prodded gently. He snapped out of his thoughts and quickly pulled on his shirt and eye patch before turning to Misato with a bright grin. "What do you say we go out for lunch? My treat."

"Great!" Misato cheered.

(:ii:)

Misato frowned as she drove through the streets of Tokyo-3. Besides her, Shinji was a million miles away, his eye fixed on a point far beyond the windshield. "So, what was with you and the blood test?" Misato winced. She had been trying to sound casual. "Scared of needles or something?"

"It's nothing," Shinji stated. Misato frowned. After his last outburst, she hadn't felt much like tempting fate. "Where do you want to go?"

"I haven't been in Tokyo-3 in years," Shinji pointed out. Misato thought about that for a minute and jerked the wheel of her ancient Alpine hard. The car skidded through a yellow light. "Your driving has gotten better."

"I'm living on a fixed UN pension," Misato replied cheerfully. "My insurance already eats up way too much of my cash."

"Still?" Misato punched him in the arm and pulled over.

"Here we are!" Shinji stared at the ramen shop through the window.

"I appreciate the sentiment," he began, "but I car afford to treat you to something more expensive."

"You don't remember?" Misato pouted. Shinji chuckled and climbed out of the car with Misato on his heels.

"Actually, I do," he stated. "This is where you brought. . .where you brought. . .us, after that Angel." Misato frowned at the way his voice hitched.

"I really am here if you want to talk," she stated. Shinji shot her a wiry grin.

"Is that to help me or your curiosity?" Misato put on her best devastated look.

"How could you think that?" she demanded. Shinji raised an eyebrow. "Well, maybe a little." Shinji laughed and glanced around.

"I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" Misato demanded.

"Bathroom. I'll be right back."

(:ii:)

Shinji slipped into the alleyway and scowled. "What are you doing here?"

"Why are you with her?" Asuka demanded from behind him. He turned and glared down at the fuming redhead.

"I'm enjoying my life," he stated.

"I am your life!" Asuka snapped fiercely. "Just like how you are my life."

"I thought we agreed," Shinji commented. "I'm not your Shinji, not anymore. It's over, Asuka."

"It's not over!" Asuka roared. "After everything we've done to each other, do you think I can just let you go? Do you think you can let me go? I know this isn't you Shinji. You're just pretending." Shinji stared at her, his fists clenching tightly. He wanted it so much. His senses seemed to sharpen, eagerly preparing for battle. He took a deep breath, trying to stop the blood roaring through his veins.

"I just had a Blue Pattern test," he stated slowly. "I'm human, Asuka." The redhead stared at him uncomprehendingly.

"The test was wrong." She was almost pleading.

"The test was right," Shinji stated. "I'm either human, or I'm so weak that no one can tell the difference."

"I can," Asuka spat. "You aren't human, Shinji. You're a monster, just like me."

"Not anymore. Go away Asuka. We both need to find ways to live without the other. As a matter of fact, I was growing tired of the fighting. I like this."

"Liar," Asuka hissed. "You're my blood-thirsty berserker. You'll prove it in the end. You can't fit in here and you don't like this." With that she was gone. Shinji stared at the spot she had occupied and turned sharply to land a harsh punch against the side of one of the dumpsters filling alleyway. Pain roared through his arm and he had to bite back a bitter laugh as he examined his bruised knuckles. He had forgotten how fragile humans really were.

"I really am pathetic now, aren't I?"

(:ii:)

Misato frowned as she waited for Shinji's return. What was taking him so long? She glanced out through the ramen shop's front windows and felt her frown become a scowl. Shinji was standing outside chatting with a young, dark-haired woman. The woman was holding a map up, but Misato could easily read her body language. She was looking for a lot more than just directions.

Fortunately, Shinji's body language quite clearly stated that he was entirely oblivious, not that Misato was going to give him time to figure it out. She pushed the door open and tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, I already ordered. Our food is coming up."

"Thanks," Shinji stated as he flashed her a smile before turning to the other woman. "I'm sorry I couldn't be any more help Miss Kurosaki."

"Oh, it's fine," the woman stated with a giggle even as she eyed Misato coldly. "It just figures that the first person I asked for directions would be another tourist. Thanks anyways."

"Not a problem." Misato watched the woman disappear and quickly ushered Shinji inside by the arm. She wasn't being jealous, she was being protective. Of this she assured herself. After all, Shinji was fifteen years her junior, almost like a son really, even if he did look damn fine without a shirt.

"So, what did you want to eat, Shinji?"

"But you just. . ."

"What did you want to eat, Shinji?" Misato interrupted, the fingers wrapped around his forearm tightening like a vise.

"Uh. . .pork ramen?"

"Sounds good!" Misato exclaimed as she turned to the young lady behind the counter. "Two pork ramen meals please."

"Will that be all?" the cashier asked.

"Yup." Misato watched as the meals were totaled up and shot a glance over her shoulder at Shinji. "Well?"

"Well what?" Shinji asked.

"You're paying, aren't you?" Misato asked.

"Right."

(:ii:)

Shinji Ikari was not one to believe in unalienable truths. . .normally. After all, the truth was what those with power said it was. Sadly, there was one truth that he doubted would ever change, he just didn't get women. Sometimes they seemed like such normal creatures, most of the time they just didn't make any sense at all. "So," he began, not entirely sure where he was going with the conversation he was trying to start. In the end he gave up on it. "How's the food?"

"It's pretty good," Misato stated. "Don't think I missed that look you had when the food came up. Don't like ramen?"

"It's just been a while," Shinji stated. "There wasn't much Japanese food in Britain."

"Britain?" Misato asked, perking up immediately. Shinji frowned as he considered the ramifications of what he had just said. What harm could there be? "So you've been in Europe?"

"No," Shinji stated. "As Doctor Akagi stated, mainland Europe is a battlefield right now. I much preferred the United Kingdom, Scotland and North Ireland specifically. It was quiet there." A smile appeared on Misato's face. "What?"

"I'm just thinking of you in a kilt," she stated as she began giggling. Shinji stared at her blankly for a moment before the admission took hold and he too began chuckling.

"I might be able to pull it off, you know?" Shinji asked. That made Misato laugh all the harder. This was nice. There was no tension here, no one worrying about tomorrow. It was. . .soothing. They finished the rest of their meals in comfortable silence. "So," Shinji began as they threw away their trays and made their way towards Misato's Alpine, "what do you want to do now?"

"How about we pick up a movie?" Misato asked.

"Sounds good to me." And it really did.

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Alright smartasses, I knew there'd be giggles when me and that bitch romance showed up together. Although, generally, you guys seemed to get a kick out of the story, or perhaps just the concept of me doing romance, so I decided to slap this sucker up and see what you guys think.

The pacing on this stuff is killing me. I don't want to go too fast, but it's hard not to slow down so much that I'm dragging things out. As my big experiment, I think this stuff is going to either skip along or drunken low crawl, so be sure to call me on it so I learn my lesson.


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own anything

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Three:

Shinji stared at the aisles and aisles of movie cases before him and wondered if he was the first person to ever be intimidated by such a sight. He had already made the mistake of looking over the 'new releases' wall and had realized that he had never heard of any of these movies. A second look had revealed that he knew almost none of the actors either. "What do you think Shinji?" Misato asked as she held up two cases. "Do you like Yuki Sagara?"

"Who?" Shinji asked. Misato stared at him for a minute.

"Oh," she stated suddenly. "I forgot; you left Japan, didn't you?"

"Yeah." Misato disappeared into the stacks again for a moment before popping out with another couple of movies.

"Renee Connor?" she ventured. "I love her works, don't. . ." she trailed off as she stared at Shinji's face. "You have no idea who she is, do you?" Shinji shook his head. "Do they not have movie theatres in the United Kingdom?"

"None that I saw," Shinji admitted and Misato's jaw dropped. "Relax, I'm sure there are theatres, I just never bothered going to them."

"This movie's a couple of years old!" Misato protested. "It's on TV all the time now."

"I didn't watch TV," Shinji stated. He wished Misato wouldn't look at him like that. It reminded him of all the things he had ignored around him in favor of his own activities. "Why don't you just pick whatever you like?"

"Any preferences," Misato asked, "comedy, romance, action?"

"Anything," Shinji replied. Misato smiled brightly and retreated into the stacks again. Shinji started to follow after her, but a couple of movie titles in the 'action' section caught his eye. "Attack of the Angels," he read. Another proclaimed its title to be about the Tragedy of Flensburg. Shinji smirked and picked that one up.

He remembered Flensburg. The Angels had crossed into Germany from Denmark. It had been their first offensive maneuver and the humans had been wholly unprepared for just how powerful they were. "The story of the tragic surprise attack by the Angels that led to the destruction of the once beautiful city of Flensburg," Shinji read, his amusement fleeing with every word, "and the massacre of the city's brave defenders." So that was it, a surprise attack? The Angels had destroyed the city? The defenders had been massacred?

No mention of how the humans had known the Angels were coming. No mention of the pathetic, mismanagement of the soldiers. No mention of how the officers had fled in a panic when they realized they were doomed and had called in air strikes from outside the city. Unfortunately, they had either forgotten to, or failed to see the need to, inform any of their own troops of this scorched Earth policy. It had been messy.

(:ii:)

"Shinji?" Misato frowned as she stalked up the center of the movie store, glancing down the aisles in search of her friend. She had managed to scrounge up a pretty decent romantic comedy. "Shinji?" She smiled as she saw Shinji standing in the action aisle. "Hey. . ." she trailed off as she stared at his right hand. His fingers were clenched into such a tight fist that blood was trickling from his knuckles. "Shinji?" Shinji's head snapped around and Misato fell back a step under his withering gaze. His expression softened in an instant.

"Find something you like?" he asked as he replaced the movie case he had been reading.

"Uh. . .yeah," Misato replied weakly. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," he replied.

"Good," Misato stated as she forced a smile. "Hey, could you grab one of those popcorn cartons for me? I'll meet you at the front."

"Sure thing." He turned and strode down the aisle. Misato waited until he was out of sight before snatching up the case he had been holding. It was the movie about Flensburg, one of the first to come out about the Angel war in Europe. It had gotten dozens of awards and praise from everyone, though the battle itself had become a favorite of conspiracy theorists. She knew that much, but had never paid much attention to the individual theories. That, she decided, would have to be fixed. She replaced the movie and moved to front of the store where Shinji was waiting with a bucket of ready-to-be-popped popcorn. "Get lost?"

"Changed my mind," Misato replied as she held up her movie, happy that she hadn't shown it to him before. "Romantic comedy sound okay?"

"Sounds fine," Shinji replied. Misato checked out the movie on her account and Shinji paid for the popcorn. "So, what's that about?"

"Oh, some lady is about to get married when her first love rolls back into town,' Misato stated as they walked out of the store. "I know its cliché and all, but it's funny."

"Sounds good," Shinji replied.

(:ii:)

"Here we are," Misato stated as she hunted through the bags Shinji had set down on the kitchen table and came up with the popcorn.

"Why don't I take care of that?" Shinji asked.

"It's only popcorn," Misato replied dismissively. "I can work a microwave well enough to pop popcorn. Why don't you go set up the TV?"

"Fine." Misato pushed the tub into the microwave and punched the popcorn button. Things had gotten so much simpler after Ritsuko had figured out how to program the microwave. Misato grabbed a couple of beers and made her way to the couch where Shinji was playing with the remote. He flipped through the channels quickly, trying to find the proper one before stopping suddenly.

"What's this?" Misato glanced at the screen and winced. This was not going to be good.

"It's a movie they made about the Evas," she stated. Shinji stared at the screen with an unreadable expression for a moment.

"Why do they keep calling me Hirano?"

"They couldn't find you. . .or Rei to ask your permission to use your names," Misato stated, glancing nervously at the man when she mentioned Rei.

"I see," Shinji stated. "I guess Asuka gave her permission."

"Well, yeah," Misato agreed. "Everyone knows that she's fighting the Angels in Europe. I tried to contact her to find out about you, but she never returned my calls."

"She was busy," Shinji murmured. He stared raptly at the screen for a few minutes longer before his blank expression twisted into a frown. "What channel does this thing have to be on?"

"Three," Misato replied. She heard the microwave's timer sound. "There's the popcorn. I'll be right back." She hurried into the kitchen and checked on the popcorn. To her annoyance, the lid that covered the kernels hadn't even been pushed half way up. She closed the microwave again and hit the popcorn button one more time before heading back to the couch.

"Popcorn?" Shinji asked.

"It wasn't done," Misato replied crisply. She collapsed onto the couch next to Shinji and stared at the trailers rolling across the screen.

"Lot of comedies," Shinji commented after a few of them.

"Everybody wants to be amused," Misato replied with a shrug. "In case you haven't noticed, the worlds in a bit of a mess right now."

"Believe me, I know," Shinji stated. "Do you smell something burning?"

"The popcorn!" Misato leapt to her feet and sprinted back to the kitchen. The popcorn was indeed burned beyond recovered. "God damn it." Her one moment to shine in the kitchen in front of Shinji and she had managed to ruin popcorn. A quick search of the cupboards exposed a regular bag of popcorn and she put it in the microwave.

"Everything okay?" Shinji asked.

"Perfect," Misato groused as she rejoined him. "Popcorn will be a few more minutes."

"Sure."

(:ii:)

Shinji chuckled as he heard the microwave beep again. "And what's so funny, Mister Ikari?" Misato demanded as she plopped down next to him with a bag of popcorn.

"Nothing," Shinji stated quickly. He reached into the bag and grabbed a few pieces.

"Well?" Misato demanded after they were eaten.

"Its fine," Shinji replied.

"See!" the raven haired woman cried. "I can cook something without burning it!"

"I never even doubted you," Shinji replied as he hit the play button.

"I hope you like this one," Misato commented. "I have a couple of movies in my closet somewhere, but they're all sappy romances."

"Can't say I would want to sit through one of those," Shinji commented as he leaned back into the soft couch. How long had it been since he had done something so. . .normal with someone? Had he ever? His musings were quickly derailed as Misato leaned up against him and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Little sleepy," she murmured.

"That's. . .fine," Shinji replied after a moment. Hesitantly, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and allowed her to rest her head more against his chest.

"Thanks." She was out cold before the movie was even half over and much to Shinji's surprise, so was he.

(:ii:)

Asuka scowled as she stared at the scene before her. What right did Misato have to be close to Shinji? She had no idea what he had been through, what he had done. She would probably be horrified if she ever found out.

Her scowl turned to a smirk as she watched Shinji shift. It was convincing. He almost had her fooled. Her hand tingled slightly as she gathered her energy and pushed it out of her fist between her thumb and forefinger. She crept forward and raised the quietly-crackling orange blade, but Shinji remained where he was.

That wasn't what she had been anticipating. Was he suicidal? Did he think she wouldn't do it? That last thought brought Asuka's scowl back as she held the blade against his throat. He still remained perfectly calm. Asuka withdrew her weapon of choice and stared at him carefully. She could see his eyes jerking wildly under his eyelids.

There was no way it should be possible, but all outward signs pointed to only one place. Shinji Ikari was asleep. Asuka stepped back and considered what to do next. That was when Shinji's eyes snapped open violently. "Bad dreams?" Asuka asked, at a loss for anything else to say.

"Very," Shinji agreed.

"You know," Asuka began conversationally, "I thought people who have been in a war for years were light sleepers."

"Well, I'm new to this whole 'sleep' thing," Shinji stated as he careful extracted himself from Misato and rose to his feet. "Let's continue this out on the balcony."

"Alright." Shinji grabbed a pair of beers off the table and lead Asuka towards Misato's balcony. He closed the door carefully behind them and offered her one of the cans. She took it and popped the tab. They stood silently for a long time, staring down at the city below them and sipping their beers.

"Look at them down there," Shinji said suddenly, nearly making Asuka jump. "Like insects." Asuka had to laugh. It was almost like having her Shinji back, though there was none of the old spite in his voice. "Did you know they made a movie about Flensburg?"

"I saw it," Asuka admitted. "I had to turn it off, too much propaganda. Do you want to know something funny?"

"What?" Shinji asked.

"They had you leading the attack," Asuka stated, "and the guy they had playing you was this big pretty boy actor who decided that playing a bad guy would make him a serious actor. He was about as threatening as a kitten."

"What so funny about me leading the attack?" Shinji demanded.

"Come on, Shinji," Asuka began, "we both know you don't know your flank from your foot. If it weren't for Al, you'd be little better than those idiots trying to fight the UN in Africa."

"Those guys have done a fairly decent job, if I do recall correctly," Shinji stated.

"I'll give you that, but the Angels have been doing a much better job," Asuka stated. "Face it, Al knows what he's doing and you'd have been in major trouble without him."

"Fine," Shinji groused, "I'll own up to it. Al was a God send." Asuka sipped her beer contemplatively.

"You really are a human now, aren't you?" she asked.

"Yeah, I am," Shinji stated.

"You hate humans," Asuka commented. "Do you really think you can live with them?" Shinji frowned.

"I don't know," he admitted finally. "There's something about this place, I just don't feel the hate and rage here. Mostly, I just feel tired of the fighting and the killing."

"Even with me?" Asuka asked quietly. The thought bothered her. If she wasn't an enemy, what was she to him? Was she anything at all?

"How many years have we fought, Asuka?" Shinji asked. "Our fights have destroyed cities, armies, and anything else that got between us. My men knew to run when they saw us fighting. Aren't you tired of not having anyone because you knew that I would kill them just to hurt you?"

"I do have someone," Asuka stated quietly.

"Then stay with them and be happy," Shinji stated.

"I can't," Asuka stated. She could never admit that the only constant in her life, had been Shinji. "Don't you feel anything when you see me?"

"Nothing." Asuka's fist clenched and she finished her beer. "So, going back to the war then?"

"No," Asuka stated. "I hate humans."

"Than why did you fight for them?" Shinji asked.

"Because you fought for the Angels," Asuka stated. "We're opposites, Shinji. We couldn't stand each other when we were on the same side before."

"What about when it was just the three of us?" Shinji pressed. "We were all so happy then."

"I wasn't," Asuka stated. "I hated it. All along, I felt it inside me, eating away at me."

"Is that why you turned us in?" Shinji asked quietly. Asuka's throat felt dry and her chest still ached as she thought of what had happened.

"I didn't know what they would do to you and Rei," she stated after a moment. Her eyes burned and she pretended to drink from her empty can so she could wipe her eyes. "But, yes. That's why I gave you both up."

"Ah."

"You know," Asuka added, "people will probably come after you for all that you've done; all the lives you've taken."

"Maybe," Shinji admitted. "I doubt it. SEELE will never release my real name because, in some small way, that would also be revealing their role in everything that's gone wrong with this world."

"What will you do if someone does show up looking for your head?" Asuka pressed. Shinji glanced over at her and she saw that old, dangerous spark in his remaining eye.

"I'll slaughter them, what else would I do?" he asked, his lips curving into a smile that wasn't quite sane. "That interests me; just how easy is it for a human to kill a human? I hope it's not as easy as an Angel killing a human. That would be rather disappointing."

"Gee, for a while there, I thought you'd grown a conscience, Berserker," Asuka teased.

"If I had a conscience, I'd have killed myself for what I've done," Shinji stated. "You seem to be mistaken. I said I was tired of killing. I did not say that I had any sort of problem with it."

"That's my Shinji," Asuka stated. She could feel something burning inside her, something warm and familiar. "You disgusting monster. Tell me, why did you raise an army of Angels, Shinji?

"To do what the Angels were meant to do," Shinji stated.

"And what's that?"

"To wipe these disgusting, undeserving creatures from the face of this planet," Shinji answered. "They've caused two impacts; why not give them the utter destruction of their species that they seem to be begging for?" Asuka could feel her lips stretching into a smile.

"God help you if you ever get your powers back, Shinji," she stated, "because on that day, you'll turn around and find me there and the game will begin again."

(:ii:)

Misato blinked blearily as she looked around, lost in the disorientation that struck her when she was awoken abruptly. That brought up the question, what had woken her? She shivered slightly and it struck her. She was cold all of the sudden. Why was she so suddenly cold? Shinji!

Shinji wasn't there. Misato pushed herself up and looked around again, knuckling the sleep out of her eyes, though she still felt barely awake. She looked at the sliding glass door leading to her balcony. For a second, she could have sworn that she saw two people standing there. She rubbed her eyes again and only saw Shinji out there. She pushed the door open and he turned to smile at her.

"Come on, Shinji. It's cold."

"Right," Shinji replied as he wrapped an arm around her and let her drag him back to the couch. She pushed him down and promptly climbed on top of him before dragging down the afghan that had been draped over the back of the piece of furniture. "Happy now?"

"Much," Misato replied happily as she snuggled into his chest.

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. A little short than my previous chapters, but this one did come out a little easier. Maybe I'm getting better. Anyway, finally some information on what Shinji's been doing, but not why he did it exactly. What do you guys think?

Alright, now for my rant. I've been getting a lot of people asking me what I think of politics, what with the elections coming up and all. A lot of people seem to be rather interested in finding out who I'm going to vote for. However, I know exactly what they're actually asking me. They want to know if I, as a white guy, am going to vote for the black man or the white man.

You know what? Fuck them both. I ain't voting. This is going to be a circus of an election. Sure, lots of people are going to vote, but not for the right reasons. They're only going to vote for the black man because he's black or the white man because he's white or the white man so the black man won't win. Frankly, I hate politicians. Black, white, Mexican, I don't give a damn. Politicians are all the same.

I've been told that America is different. Politicians here want to help the people, unlike corrupt politicians elsewhere who don't give a damn. Well, you know what folks, our politicians would jump on a bribe if they thought they could get away with it. I live in Delaware on a tiny back road. A local mobster is putting in a strip mall. The Delawarean government just happens to decided that my little back road suddenly needs to be straightened out and have sidewalks put in. Fuck them.

And here's another little thing that bothers me, Obama is half black. Why does nobody seem to notice that? Everybody just calls him black, despite the fact that he should be able to just as easily be called white too. It's like, once you're not all white, you can't be white at all. Am I the only one who thinks that's a little fucked up? Maybe it's just me.

Wait, when did I leave politics and going into race?


	4. Chapter 4

I don't own anything

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Four

Asuka frowned as she stood before the council. She could see that at least two of them were real. A long time ago they had tried to make her stand before a group of all holographic avatars. She had taken some offense to that and promptly destroyed the building they were meeting in and all the people inside. Since then they had made sure that at least one person was there in person to debrief her. "What are your thoughts, Sohryu?"

"It's legitimate," Asuka admitted. "Ikari's powers are gone."

"I see," the avatar representing the chairman stated. "This is excellent. Without him the Angels will crumble."

"They won't," Asuka replied. "They still have their tactician. The war is far from over."

"With your abilities, we will be able to overpower them easily," one of the men stated.

"I quit." There was silence for a good, solid minute.

"You cannot. . ."

"I can," Asuka interrupted. "I owe you nothing. Without Shinji, what's the point?"

"How can your abandon the cause. . ."

"I never gave a shit about your cause," Asuka interrupted again. "I believe that I mentioned that before. I never fought for your pathetic cause. I am not a human, don't you dare think that I care about your survival. I fought because Shinji was here. Now he's gone and so am I."

"We won't allow. . ."

"Calm yourself," the chairman stated flatly. "You have made that point clear before, Sohryu. Are you sure that we cannot persuade you to remain? You know that we can get you anything."

"No you can't," Asuka corrected. The chairman seemed to know exactly what she was thinking about.

"What do you think we should do about Ikari?" he asked.

"Leave him," Asuka stated. "Why give the Angels a martyr to fight for? They've been doing pretty well motivated largely by stagnating rage. You kill Ikari and this war will explode, just like it was in the beginning."

"I see," the chairman replied. "You are, of course, correct. Ikari is to remain alive. It is a shame to see you go, Miss Sohryu, but we will, of course, respect your decision."

"What if you are wrong?" someone demanded suddenly. Asuka's lips stretched into a broad grin.

"Do you really have to ask what you should do if Ikari gets his powers back?" she demanded. "If that happens, you will find me, understand?"

"Of course," the chairman replied peaceably. "This will be a major public relations victory. We will announce the end of the Berserker as soon as possible."

(:ii:)

Misato moaned and shuffled around so that she could pull her arm out from under her. The watch wrapped around her numbed appendage told her it was eight in the morning, an unsightly hour for a woman such as herself to be awake. She wanted desperately to return to the warm oblivion of sleep, but something was bothering her.

It took her muddled mind quite a while to produce an answer. Shinji was gone again. She wanted to go to sleep, but more importantly, she wanted Shinji to be asleep with her.

"Shinji!" Misato called, pulling the blanket tighter around herself. To her annoyance, the designated male of the house did not respond. Grumbling her annoyance, Misato sat up and looked around her apartment. She leaned back from the couch and glanced at the balcony, but the glass doors revealed it to be empty. Misato pouted as she realized that her quest for her preferred source of warmth would actually require her to stand up and walk around her apartment, at eight in the morning.

Few things could get Misato to actually do more than sit up before noon. For scale, the apocalypse was not one of these things. In the end, finding Shinji and dragging him back to the couch turned out to be one of those things as Misato rose and wrapped her blanket more securely around herself as protection on her long and arduous journey.

A quick walk around her apartment revealed it to be empty. A second, somewhat more desperately thorough, sweep revealed no clothes in Shinji's room or any sign that anyone other than Misato had been living in the apartment.

She was damn near hyperventilating when she heard the front door open. She sprinted out of Shinji's room and froze when she came upon Shinji in the doorway, quietly pulling off a pair of running shoes. He glanced up and smiled at her.

"What are you doing up?" he asked. "Never mind, let me take a shower and I'll start breakfast. Sound good?" He studied her face. "Is something wrong?"

"I-I. . .I thought. . ." Shinji's head tilted slightly as he studied her. "Where have you been?"

"Jogging," he answered. "I told you, I don't work out much, but I do work out." Misato felt something wet run down her cheek and she quickly batted it away. She was not going to cry. Nope, never. Okay, maybe a little. She grabbed Shinji in a tight hug and buried her face in his chest as the tears flowed. "Misato? What's wrong?"

"I thought you had left," Misato mumbled. Shinji's arms came up and wrapped around her tightly, quickly soothing her panic.

"Oh," he replied simply. They stood that way for a while until Misato's tears finally abated. She pulled away and grinned up at him as she poked him in the belly.

"You're all sweaty."

"Exercise," Shinji stated. "It's good for you. Keeps the fat away." Misato gawked at him.

"Are you implying. . ."

"What?" Shinji interrupted. "Exercise keeps you in shape, of course. I don't think I said anything about you in particular." Misato glared up at him before sighing in defeat. It was so much easier to intimidate someone when they didn't have to stare down at you. "Don't worry Misato, I promise, I'll never leave you again unless you ask. How about it?"

"Promise?" Misato asked.

"Cross my little black heart," Shinji replied.

"Pinky swear!" Misato declared, holding out her pinky. Shinji stared at her in disbelief for a moment before laughing and wrapping his pinky finger around hers. "Good. Now go take a shower. You smell horrible."

"And you've got the worst bed head I've ever seen," Shinji declared as he retreated to the bathroom. Misato managed to wait until she heard the door lock before sprinting to her room and staring at her mirror in horror. She looked like death warmed over. Snatching up her hairbrush, she set about trying to tame her lochs before something much more distressing caught her eye.

Wincing, Misato tugged up the hem of her T-shirt and stared at her stomach. It was still flat, but nowhere near as tight as she remembered. Apparently, the miracle vitamins that Ritsuko gave simply could not overcome gluttony and sloth on their own. If she wanted her washboard abs back she would actually have to work for them. "Damn."

(:ii:)

Shinji finished toweling his hair and then set about trying to tame it. His hair had gotten a lot longer. He had never allowed it to reach this length before simply because it obscured his vision. Shinji shrugged and wrapped a towel around his waist before moving out into his room. He pulled his duffel bag from the highest shelf in his closet and pulled out a pair of jeans before going back out to start breakfast. Misato was already at the table with a beer in each hand. At some point she had brushed her hair out. "Here."

"Thanks." Shinji took the offered beer and sipped it as he set about working on breakfast. He heard her rise from the table and walked over behind him. "What?" he asked without turning as he turned on the stove and set a frying pan on the burner.

"You smell like lilacs," Misato teased. Shinji paused and sniffed his arm. He did smell rather. . .flowery.

"I really need to remember to buy my own shampoo," he stated. He felt Misato tug at the belt loops of his jeans. "What now?"

"Are these the same jeans you wore when you showed up here?" she asked. Shinji glanced down. He only had three pairs, so it was likely. He spotted the tell-tale threadbare patch on his right knee.

"Yup. I washed them."

"Still, why don't you wear something different?" Misato pressed. "All you seem to wear is blue jeans and T-shirts."

"That's kind of everything I own," Shinji admitted. To his surprise, Misato quickly turned off the stove. "What are you doing?"

"We're going shopping!" the raven-haired woman declared.

"What about breakfast?"

"We'll grab something while we're out," Misato replied. Shinji considered it and glanced down at his jeans. They were pretty worn, so were his other pairs.

"Okay." Misato nearly tripped over her own feet on her way to get another beer.

"What?"

"I said okay," Shinji stated. Misato stared at him owlishly.

"Just like that?" she asked.

"I guess," Shinji stated. "I mean, I could use some new clothes."

"You've never been shopping with a woman before, right?"

"Right." Misato grinned gleefully.

"I've got to call Ritsuko!"

"Is that a good idea?" Shinji ventured. "I don't think she likes me."

"She'll come," Misato stated firmly. "It's in her blood. There's no way even that cold fish can deny her womanly urges."

"Urges to do what?" Shinji asked. This whole thing was starting to make him feel nervous.

"Drag hapless men through department stores of course!"

"I thought we were shopping for me," Shinji stated.

"We will, we will," Misato replied dismissively. "Afterward." She snatched up the cordless phone and disappeared into her room. Shinji stared at the closed door for a moment before going to the fridge and hooking a finger into the plastic wrappings of a six pack.

(:ii:)

Ritsuko had to laugh at the look on Shinji's face. "I do believe I have made a tactical error."

"Now you're learning," Ritsuko stated.

"I'm done," Misato stated. "I guess we can start shopping for you now Shinji."

"Thank Christ." Shinji shuffled the bags he was carrying. "Does this mean you're going to carry what I buy?"

"Oh no, you'll be carrying that too," Misato replied happily.

"Can we at least go back to the car so I can ditch this shit?"

"It's not shit!" Misato protested. "Just for that, no drop off for you!" Ritsuko had to smile. It was good to see her old friend so happy. "Hear me Shinji?" Misato and Ritsuko turned to see that Shinji had stopped outside of an electronics store where a small crowd was gathering. They quickly walked back to join him. "What's up Shinji?"

"That," Shinji said neutrally, nodding to the televisions in the window. Ritsuko glanced at the television. It appeared to be some kind of emergency news broadcast.

"Hey, turn up the volume!" someone called into the store. The new cast was quickly put on the store's PA speakers.

"In a shocking turn of events, the UN Security Council has called a press conference to announce the death of the Angel's leader, a man known only as the Berserker," the anchorman stated. "We now go live to the conference itself where the Council's representative John Hasting is making the announcement." The screen shifted to a standard news conference room.

"Three weeks ago on Friday, the eighth of August, the Berserker was engaged by a number of the UN's elite Counter Angel Service and was severely injured. Early this morning one of those same CAS agents was able to confirm that the Berserker indeed died of his injuries." Beside Ritsuko, Shinji snorted in amusement.

"Anything to add?" the blond asked.

"None yet," Shinji stated, "as a matter of fact, I think we've heard all the important news we're going to get from this broadcast. Stay if you want, I'm getting rid of this shit." He picked up his bags and promptly walked away. After a moment of hesitation, Misato grabbed Ritsuko by the wrist and dragged her along after him. Luckily, the blond managed to plant her feet and arrest her friend's movements after a second a struggle.

"We need to talk," she stated.

"He's getting away," Misato whined. "Can't we talk later Ritsuko?"

"He's just going to drop off your clothes," Ritsuko stated, "he isn't taking off or anything, so I say we talk now." Misato's shoulders slumped in defeat and she stopped tugging at Ritsuko's arm.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"Shinji knows a lot about the Angels, don't you think?" Ritsuko asked. His words had been bothering her since their first meeting. Just what did he know that she wasn't supposed to?

"You ran a test Ritsuko. He's human. Have the tests ever been wrong before?"

"No, they have a ninety-nine-point-nine-nine percent accuracy threshold," Ritsuko admitted. "I'm not saying he's an Angel, but he knows a lot more than he's letting on."

"So did you at one point," Misato noted coolly. "For all I know, you still do." Ritsuko's jaw closed with an audible noise. She should have known better. Misato had always been the great debater.

"Just think about it Misato."

"I will," the raven-haired woman promised. "Now come on. Shinji might try to make a break for it while he's at the car."

(:ii:)

They found Shinji trying to cram Misato's purchases into the back seat of her Alpine. "Maybe you should try the trunk," Ritsuko offered. Shinji glanced up at them with a mildly annoyed look on his face.

"The trunk is full," he stated. He finished cramming the bags into the backseat and straightened up. "I think we might have to try this again later for myself."

"We?" Ritsuko repeated.

"Me," Shinji corrected. "I will be shopping for myself later."

"But Shinji!" Misato whined.

"No," Shinji stated. "No more shopping with you."

"He's learning," Ritsuko commented.

"I do that rather quickly," Shinji replied. "Fool me once, same on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Most people fail the first time. Now, don't you think its lunch time?"

"I'd love to, but I have to get back to work," Ritsuko declared. "It was nice seeing you again, Shinji."

"Same," Shinji stated as he accepted her, somewhat awkward, hug. "Take care Doctor Akagi."

"I will," she stated. Shinji climbed into the car and Misato carefully led Ritsuko out of earshot.

"Could you do me a major favor?" Ritsuko sighed. Misato's major favors usually ended up being major trouble.

"What's up?"

"Could you look into the conspiracies about Flensburg?" Misato asked.

"Flensburg?" Ritsuko repeated.

"The Angel attack," Misato clarified. "I remember that there're a lot of conspiracies, but I can't remember what they are."

"Aren't we a little old for me to be doing your research projects?" Ritsuko asked. "You still owe me quite a bit of money for those papers, by the way."

"Come on, Rits," Misato whined. "You're better at that stuff than I am. Besides, it's not like you have a lot to do at NERV anymore." Ritsuko sighed in annoyance. That much was true.

"I guess."

"Thanks Ritsuko!" Misato exclaimed. "I owe you one."

"I'll put it on your tab," Ritsuko replied dryly.

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Well, sorry about last week folks. At least my emergency warning system is working. I think I'm going to rename it. How about the Cynical Broadcasting System? That sounds good. Remember folks, trust CBS. Heh.

Alright, I've got a few amusing stories. First, I got sharpshooter on the rifle range. Go me. Second, for a good time type in Dark Knight Interrogation on youtube.

Most importantly, I think I ran into someone at my college who reads this stuff. She was a really pretty young lady who was sitting outside my college's library. We ended up talking about religion over a couple of smokes (seems like everybody in my college smokes, teacher and student alike) and I just unload on her. I finish up and she stares at me for a few minutes before saying, "You're really cynical, aren't you?" I laugh and say, "You have no idea." She laughs and we jabber on about more mudane topics. She says she likes to write and, after some trepidation, admits that she writes fanfiction. Maybe its because people don't take fanfiction authors seriously, but a lot of us won't own up to it. Kind of a guilty pleasure.

After she owns up, I had to admit that I do to. She mentions this site and I say I post here. We don't bother with names for fear that the other will actually read something they wrote and think the other is a hack. We talk a little more and she says she has to go to class. As she's walking away she says, "So long Jack. You're nicer than I thought." I didn't pay much attention to that. Nicer than she thought? Maybe a friend of hers knew me. Jack? Maybe a catchall name, like, "So long Joe." Or, she reads this stuff and managed to recognize me from a Mister C Diatribe™. So, if she's reading this now, we should catch lunch or something.

The rest of you keep your yaps shut and review the story, I add this knowing full well that you little buggers are going to pounce on me for this.


	5. Chapter 5

I don't own anything

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Five:

Asuka frowned as she looked around her current location. She had long ago learned to expect anything when Shinji Ikari was involved, but there was simply no way she could have expected this. Another quick looked revealed the location of her quarry. Asuka quickly made her way through the men's clothing store and crashed to a halt behind Shinji. "What the hell are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" Shinji asked, not turning away from the mirror as he held up one of the polo shirts he was holding in front of himself. "What do you think, black or blue?"

"You're kidding, right?" Asuka asked. "What happened to fatigues?"

"Never liked them really," Shinji replied, holding up the other shirt. "They were comfortable and durable, but not really my style. I never wanted to play soldier."

"Since when have you had a style?" Asuka asked.

"Since now, I suppose," Shinji stated. "Black or blue?"

"Black," Asuka stated. Shinji held up the black shirt.

"You're right," he stated. "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," Asuka stated. "Where's that old drunk?"

"Home," Shinji replied. "I made the mistake of allowing her to take me clothes shopping earlier. In the end, we didn't have any room in her car for any clothes of my own, so here I am."

"Ah," Asuka replied. She picked up one of the shirts sitting next to Shinji. "Nobody wears Hawaiian shirts, Shinji."

"I like that one," Shinji protested.

"Trust me, stick with solid patterns," Asuka stated. Shinji's eye caught hers through the mirror and the redhead winced slightly. The accusatory looked she had received said more than any words could have. He was reminding her of the last time he had trusted her.

"What did the Council have to say?" Shinji asked, picking up another pair of shirts.

"They don't want to give the Angels a martyr," Asuka stated. "You're off the hook, Shinji."

"I thought as much," Shinji replied. "Did you quit?"

"Yeah," Asuka answered as she sunk down into a nearby seat. "What's the point anymore? Why try to kill my own species?"

"Why betray them in the first place?" Shinji asked. He should have just stuck a knife in her chest; it would have been less painful.

"Shinji, I didn't know what they would do to you and Rei," she whispered, speech difficult around the lump in her throat. "You have to believe me."

"Ignorance is not an excuse," Shinji stated calmly, "and killing is killing even if you don't actually do it yourself. You killed her Asuka and you damn near killed me."

"Do you know what its like to know that?" Asuka asked. "Do you know how I felt when I found out?"

"Relieved you didn't have any more competition?" Shinji hissed, turning to face her. Asuka could have sworn she felt her heart rend itself in two. She stood and made her way out of the store as quickly as she could. It just wouldn't do for Shinji to see her cry.

(:ii:)

Ritsuko frowned as she stared at her watch. She had been trying to keep herself busy, if only to prove Misato wrong. That was foolish of course; there really wasn't much work for her to do in NERV anymore. SEELE had assigned them the task of trying to undue the paralysis that had taken hold of the MP Evas, but as far as Ritsuko could figure, the effects were permanent.

With a sigh, she opened her laptop and brought up her favored search engine. Her conversation with Misato had sparked her curiosity.

Flensburg? It had to do with Shinji. There was simply no other explanation for why Misato would suddenly be so curious about the beginning of the current Angel War. Now, what could the connection be?

(:ii:)

Misato groaned as she dropped her gym bag and staggered towards the fridge. The damn gym Nazi in the Geo-Front had really worked her over. "Oh, my back," she whined to herself as she grabbed a six pack and dragged it out of fridge. "Who in their right mind volunteers for this shit?"

She staggered to the couch and sank down into it gratefully. There wasn't a single part of her that didn't ache. She looked around for the remote and moaned as she spotted it on the coffee table. Way over there. After a moment of deliberation, Misato popped a beer and sprawled herself over the arm of the couch to stare out the window. Over there was just far enough to be too far away. Sadly, the window was apparently stuck on the weather channel.

Misato decided that she could deal with that, or she thought she could until she noticed two beer cans sitting outside on the balcony. Had Shinji taken to drinking out there when she wasn't looking? Misato climbed slowly to her feet and tugged the balcony door open. The memory of the previous night hit her and she kneeled and scooped up the cans.

Of course! Shinji had been out there drinking when she woke up. Misato chuckled at her own thoughts until she stared at the cans. One was regular. The other had lipstick on it. Unless Shinji had taken to cross dressing, which Misato sincerely hoped wasn't true, there had been another woman here. The rest of the previous night came to her. The person she thought she had imagined! There had been someone outside with Shinji.

"I'm back." Misato probably could have reached orbit if she hadn't been so sore.

"Jesus Christ, Shinji!"

"What?" the dark-haired man asked. "What are you hiding behind your back?"

"Beer cans," Misato replied with forced cheerfulness as she held up the two cans. "I was having a drink on the balcony." Why was she lying to him? All she had to do was ask who the other woman was. It wouldn't be a problem. Probably just slide it in while teasing him, but what if he thought she was spying on her? Would he leave thinking she was too clingy or defensive?

"Nice outfit." Shinji's comment dragged her out of her jumbled thoughts and she looked down at herself. She hadn't changed after leaving the gym, being far too eager to put as much space between herself and her 'trainer' as possible.

"Thanks," Misato replied. "I just got back from the gym at the Geo-Front. I missed my last couple of work outs because of your arrival." There was no way in hell she would own up to the truth, even as her inner tactician raced through dozens of scenarios trying to figure out what to say to Shinji.

"Ah," Shinji replied. "Sure."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Misato demanded, glaring at her former charge. Nobody called her bluff and got away with it!

"Nothing," Shinji replied as he walked into his room to drop off the large bags he was carrying.

"I do work out!" Misato protested. "I work out a lot."

"I didn't say you didn't," Shinji replied as he stepped back out into the living room. "I like the ponytail." Misato frowned and reached up for her hair. So, Shinji liked ponytails, did he?

"Thanks." Misato studied his posture. He was tense, his whole body seeming to vibrate. Something had happened while he was out shopping. "Are you okay?" He turned and smiled at her. The lines around his remaining eye seemed oddly more pronounced, making him look much older.

"I'm fine," he stated simply. "Getting to be about dinner time. Want to stay in tonight?"

"Sounds good," Misato replied. "Let me get a shower and I'll help you cook."

"That's okay," Shinji replied quickly. Misato pouted.

"I can cook!"

"It's no problem," Shinji replied. "Why don't you take a nice, long bath? Dinner will probably be done when you get out." Misato weighed her options. A nice bath sounded pretty good to her screaming muscles at the moment.

"Fine," she replied finally. "Tomorrow I'm going to cook though."

"Sure."

(:ii:)

Shinji eyed the timer on the stove and sipped his beer. He had a couple of minutes before he needed to check the stove's contents. Someone knocked and Shinji tensed, more out of habit than any expectation of an attack. He made his way to the door and glanced through the peephole, frowning as he caught an eyeful of blond hair. He pulled the door open and smiled down at Ritsuko. "Good evening Doctor Akagi?"

"Is Misato here?" Ritsuko asked. Shinji frowned at the eagerness in her voice.

"She's in the bath," Shinji replied. "Would you like to. . ." he trailed off as the older woman brushed past him. "Want a beer?"

"Sure." Shinji grabbed another beer from the fridge and felt an eyebrow rise as Ritsuko pounded on the bathroom door.

"Get out here Misato!"

"I'm taking a bath!" Misato whined from the other side of the door.

"Hurry up!" Ritsuko demanded. Shinji offered her the beer and she snatched it out of his hand, downing it with surprising speed. Shinji shrugged and went back to check on his roast. He really needed to put some effort into remembering how to cook Japanese food.

"What is your problem Ritsuko?" Shinji glanced up in time to see the blond doctor grab Misato by the wrist and drag her into her bedroom, slamming the door rather loudly for a sliding door. After a moment of deliberation he made his way to the door and knocked.

"Hey, if you two are going to get really noisy I'm going to take your example and eat out."

"Very funny!" Misato snapped from inside. Shinji chuckled and retreated back to the kitchen. He had thought that was rather clever himself as he picked up the towel Misato had dropped and walked to the bathroom to hang it up.

(:ii:)

"What is your problem, Ritsuko?" Misato demanded as she dressed quickly. The blond ignored her and scowled as she tried to find an open plug.

"Ah ha!" She plugged in her laptop and quickly opened the small computer. Misato frowned as she studied her friend. It took a lot to get her this worked up.

"You found something, didn't you?"

"Yeah," the blond stated. "Have you watched the news recently?"

"Not since this morning," Misato stated.

"The Security Council has made a further announcement," Ritsuko stated as her fingers danced across her laptop's keyboard. "It turns out that their elite CAS guys are actually artificial Angels."

"Artificial Angels?" Misato repeated. "They can make Angels?"

"Not make," Ritsuko stated, "modify. Their CAS agents were all humans who were made into Angels."

"Doesn't sound too moral," Misato commented, "making monsters to fight monsters? Anyway, if the UN can manufacture Angels, why is the real thing giving them so much trouble?"

"The process is supposedly long, expensive and has no guarantee of success," Ritsuko replied. "They've also stated that they are unable to produce Angels more powerful than Dominions. The real Angels are known to have many Dominion-class Angels and higher with the Berserker supposedly a Seraphim, the only one known to exist."

"How long have they been doing this?" Misato asked.

"Almost since the beginning," Ritsuko answered. "I think they just announced it as a way of saying that they were going to end the war soon."

"Will they?"

"Certainly not," Ritsuko answered. "Look at this." Misato glanced down at the computer and frowned.

"My German is a tad rusty," she stated dryly. Ritsuko sighed in annoyance.

"It's a conspiracy site," Ritsuko stated. "There are thousands, but most of them are utterly ridiculous."

"What's so special about this one?" Misato asked.

"He's either telling the truth or he bullshits better than you did back in college," Ritsuko stated simply.

"Nobody bullshits better than me," Misato stated proudly.

"I know. Anyway, he claims to have been in the UN's Joint Air Defense Force and his website is full of forms proving many of his theories. It's all far too elaborate."

"What kinds of forms?" Misato asked.

"Whenever the military does anything, there's a paper trail," Ritsuko stated, "even when the operations aren't official."

"So, what does it mean?" Misato asked. Why couldn't Ritsuko ever just sum things up? The blond just had to lecture everyone on her findings.

"It means that a UN bomber wing was sent to Flensburg and blew the hell out of it," Ritsuko stated proudly.

"But the UN said that Flensburg was strictly a ground battle," Misato pointed out.

"The UN lied," Ritsuko stated. "They later admitted to using precision air strikes, but kept the bombing to a minimum to avoid damaging civilian buildings."

"If they already admitted it, why are you so excited?" Misato demanded. Ritsuko brought up another file.

"This is an ordinance disposal list," she stated. "This tells us that several hundred tons of conventional high explosives were disposed of within days of Flensburg."

"So?"

"So, the UN just decided to throw out thousands and thousands of bombs?" Ritsuko demanded. "Plus, the number of bombers in the sky is certainly not what you'd expect for precision strikes. These were big, old American bombers. It would be far cheaper to use a smaller or equal number of fighter-bombers." Misato sighed in exasperation.

"What the hell does it mean?" she demanded.

"It means a UN bomber squadron set out with the intention of carpet bombing Flensburg and succeeded," Ritsuko stated proudly. "Then they covered it up."

"Why would they do that?" Misato asked. Ritsuko seemed to shrink slightly.

"I'm still working on that," she stated.

"Thanks Ritsuko." Misato cradled her head in her hands. She could feel a ground breaking headache approaching.

"But that's not what I wanted to show you," Ritsuko stated quickly. She brought up a new page. It was a small picture of a group of soldiers with blue helmets climbing over a mountain of rubble.

"What's this?" Misato asked.

"This is Cherbourg," Ritsuko stated, "another early attack. Look who's here in the background." Misato looked at the woman standing in the background. She was tall and slender in UN fatigues with shockingly-bright red hair not at all hidden by a helmet.

"That looks like. . ."

"It is," Ritsuko interrupted. "I've been looking into it. The CAS is supposed to be anonymous, but there is evidence linking Sohryu to that agency."

"Does that mean Asuka's an artificial Angel?" Misato asked.

"It would, except for one thing," Ritsuko stated. She blew up the image, pushing her laptop's resolution hard. "She has blue eyes."

"She's always had blue eyes," Misato protested.

"Artificial Angels have their eye color changed permanently to red, a sign that they can't fully control their powers," Ritsuko lectured. "Real Angels are able to suppress their powers and their eyes return to whatever color they were when they were human."

"So, Asuka's either a real Angel or not an Angel in this picture?" Misato asked.

"Yes," Ritsuko replied. Misato sighed. Maybe sending the crazy cat lady to investigate conspiracies had been a bad idea. Of course, how many crazy cat ladies had multiple PhDs? Misato knew of only one, namely the one sitting next to her. Several loud knocks on the door made them both jump.

"Are you two being quiet for my benefit or am I way off target with my suspicions?" Shinji asked.

"Off target smart ass!" Misato called.

"Alright then. Ask Doctor Akagi if she wants to stay for dinner?" Misato glanced at her blond friend.

"That'd be great, Shinji," Ritsuko called, "if it's not too much of a problem, of course."

"No problem," Shinji replied. "I always make enough for company." Misato's eyes nearly bugged out of her skull. He _really_ did always make enough for company! Was he expecting that other women? Would he feel any inclination to admit that to her? It was her apartment after all. Of course, she had spent years trying to convince him that it was his too. Had he finally taken that to heart?

"Ritsuko?"

"Hmm?" the blond hummed as she stared contemplatively at Asuka's picture.

"I'm pretty sure Shinji's had a woman over," Misato stated.

"So?" Ritsuko asked. "He's still relatively young and its not surprising that. . .oh. Can't say I find this shocking."

"What?" Misato demanded.

"I always knew, with sex drive like yours, you'd eventually start sinking your teeth into younger men," Ritsuko replied.

"I don't want to sink my teeth into him!" Misato shouted. She immediately clapped a hand over her mouth and shot a glance at the door. Ritsuko stared at her coolly, raising one eyebrow. "Well, not only sink my teeth into him," Misato admitted from behind her hand in a quiet voice.

"Really now?" Ritsuko asked. "You're sure you don't just want to use Shinji to scratch that itch of yours?"

"Of course I'm sure!" Misato snapped. "I am not a woman of loose morals!" Ritsuko just stared at her again. "Anymore," Misato added grudgingly.

"So, just tell him," Ritsuko stated after a moment.

"What if he doesn't see me like that?" Misato demanded.

"Then at least you told him," Ritsuko replied.

"What if he freaks out and thinks he has to leave because things are too awkward?" Misato pressed. Both Ritsuko's eyebrows rose this time.

"Wow. You really have fallen for him, haven't you?" Misato nodded sullenly. Why didn't anyone ever believe her when she had serious romantic concerns? She could be serious! Well, when she had to be.

"I went to the gym today," she stated flatly. Ritsuko had no smart comment for that, at least at first.

"I never thought I'd see you fall _that_ hard," she commented.

"So, what am I suppose to do?" Misato asked. She suddenly realized just who she was asking. "Why the hell am I asking you for advice on relationships?" Now it was Ritsuko's turn to get loud.

"Just what the hell is that supposed to mean?" she demanded. Misato enjoyed her chance to use Ritsuko's patented raised eyebrow and the blond made an expression somewhere between a scowl and a pout. "I'm just a very busy woman." She touched a hand to her chin. "Shinji is quite a catch. Hell, if you don't I will." She shot to her feet and Misato was promptly forced to tackle her old friend.

"That's not funny!" she wailed. Her bedroom door slid open and Shinji stepped in.

"What's with all the noise. . ." he trailed off as he stared down at them. "Huh," he grunted finally, completely nonplussed. "I was just kidding before, but if you want me to put the roast in the fridge and leave you two alone for the evening, I will." Misato's jaw dropped and Ritsuko slapped a palm over her mouth.

"Would you, dear?" she asked. "That'd be terrific."

"Not a problem," Shinji replied cheerfully. Misato managed to flip the uncharacteristically giggling blond off herself and shot to her feet.

"Not funny!" she announced.

"Its hilarious," Shinji countered, "plus you're cute when you blush." He turned and presumably heading back to the kitchen.

"Now you're really blushing," Ritsuko commented.

"Shut up," Misato replied simply.

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Alright folks. Bit of a rush job on this one. Sorry about last week. I swear, the fucking Marines need me earlier and earlier with less and less warning. I'll probably hear about a deployment the day before I ship. Oh, and I know there's plenty of mistakes in here, so I don't need a dozens messages about than and then. And I am working on that!

As for a rant, I'm just too tired right now. I spent all day digging holes and planting posts as a favor to an old friend of my family. So, as with most other days where I get to do back breaking physical labor, I'm exhausted and quite happy. Odd maybe, but I like working with my hands and being able to see results. Probably why I look at college and sigh in disgust. There was a time when callused hands meant you were a good person to have around and not just some sad person who hasn't been to college yet and/or will never do anything important with their life. Last I checked, building a fucking road is kind of important.

You know, when everybody has a degree, somebody is still going to have to dig ditches and pave roads. Or, at least in my line of work, shoot people and blow shit up.

I knew a guy who had a Doctorate in some kind of art. He got sick of toddling around in galleries so he enlisted and went grunts. He's much happier now.

Wow. That one slipped out.


	6. Chapter 6

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Six

Ritsuko covertly watched as her oldest friend happily jabbered away over dinner. Shinji just smiled indulgently and nodded on occasion. Now that she was watching, Misato's body language made her affections clear, even though it was rather subtle. That keyed Ritsuko into the situation's seriousness. Misato and subtle had never gone together before. Much like Misato and commitment. "So," Ritsuko cut in smoothly, "Misato tells me you've been in Europe all this time."

"That's right," Shinji stated.

"What parts?" Ritsuko asked.

"I stuck to the United Kingdom," Shinji answered. "It's the most stable of all the countries at the moment. I lived mostly in Scotland. It was nice and quiet up there."

"And what brings you back around here?" Ritsuko asked. She saw the muscles in Shinji's forearm clench slightly, but his pleasant smile never wavered.

"Well, I guess I just wanted to travel," Shinji stated. "Maybe the peace and quiet was wearing on me some. I thought I'd travel through Asia a little bit and Japan seemed like a decent place to start. I visited Misato on something of a whim and have yet to be able to make my escape."

"You want to escape?" Misato teased, but Ritsuko saw a flash of real anxiety in her eyes.

"Nah," Shinji replied, poking her in the shoulder playfully. "You couldn't stop me if I wanted out."

"Oh really?" Misato asked. "I'll have you know, I can be very persuasive." Shockingly, the conversation held at harmless flirting rather than dipping into the crude innuendo that Ritsuko was expecting. The familiarity with which the two communicated was also rather surprising.

"Well, I'd best be going. Dinner was excellent, Shinji."

"Already?" Misato asked as she glanced at her watch.

"I'm afraid so," Ritsuko replied as she climbed to her feet. "I have an old acquaintance that I'm trying to get a hold of."

"Who?" Misato asked. Ritsuko sighed in annoyance. She had a feeling that mentioning Asuka's name would provoke a rather significant response from Shinji.

"Nobody you'd know," the blond stated. Misato stared at her suspiciously as Shinji cleared the table and disappeared into the kitchen. 'Asuka,' Ritsuko mouthed. Misato's eyes widened and she quickly nodded.

"Alright, Ritsuko. I'll see you later."

"At the gym tomorrow?" Ritsuko ventured teasingly. Misato's eyes narrowed. "The only open trainer that I know of is Hancock. Is that who you got?"

"Yeah. I hate him."

"He's a good trainer," Ritsuko countered. "He runs marathons for fun and triathlons between them to stay in shape. He'll either get you back into shape, or kill you."

"I think we're leaning more towards death," Misato stated as she walked Ritsuko to the door. "Call me if anything comes up, okay?"

"Sure thing," Ritsuko replied. "I'll see you later, Shinji!"

"Later," Shinji returned. "Swing by any time, I love cooking for company."

(:ii:)

Shinji finished running the plates under the facet and slipped them into the dishwasher. He was getting an odd feeling from Ritsuko and Misato. They were up to something. 'Stop!' Shinji ordered himself. They were not plotting against him for Christ's sake. This was the other side of the world. People didn't plot against each other here. "Damn it."

"Damn what?" Shinji nearly jumped, but overcame the urge. He was too used to being able to sense people. "Did I scare you?" Misato teased.

"Of course not," Shinji stated as he grabbed a pair of cans from the fridge and offered her one.

"Thank. . .wait. What's this?"

"Soda," Shinji stated. "I was drinking way too much around here."

"Blasphemer," Misato growled as she tossed the can back in the fridge and grabbed her preferred beverage. "You can never drink too much beer!"

"You might not, but I can," Shinji stated as he sipped his soft drink. "I tried to drink my problems away once. It wasn't pretty. I'd rather not go down that road again."

"Oh," Misato stated after a moment. "So, I see you've had a friend over, huh, a female friend?" Shinji stared at her in surprise and sipped his soda for lack of anything to say. "Don't bother denying. I'm just that good."

"Alright. I had someone over. Sorry."

"Oh, come on," Misato whined as she punched him in the arm. "I told you when you first got here, this is your home! You can invite anyone you want." Shinji smiled.

'Thanks," he stated.

"So, who is she?" Misato asked.

"She's just someone I knew from Europe," Shinji answered. "She happened to be in Japan and found me here."

"Not a girlfriend?" Misato asked, poking him in the chest. Shinji felt his hands clench.

"No." His voice was cold and harsh. "Never. An enemy." Misato actually fell back a step.

"I'm sorry." Shinji forced himself to smile.

"It's fine," he replied. "I'm going to turn in. I've had a bit of a long day."

"It's early," Misato protested. "How about another movie?"

"Tomorrow," Shinji stated. His little confrontation with Asuka earlier had left him feeling drained.

"I guess I'll turn in too," Misato stated. Shinji nodded and made his way to his room.

"Good night, Misato."

(:ii:)

Ritsuko frowned as she stared at the message displayed on her computer screen. She had been pulling almost all the strings she had to get the number before her. She knew she had run a risk. She knew certain people were involved with this mess in some way, people with power. People who could have her disappear.

Steadying her resolves, she picked up her phone and dialed the number she had been sent. The soft chiming in her ear seemed to stretch on indefinitely. She was about to hand up when she heard the sound of the phone of the other end of the line being picked up.

"Hello?"

"Asuka?" Ritsuko asked.

"Who's asking?" the other woman asked. She sounded tired, emotionally and physically.

"This is Ritsuko Akagi," Ritsuko stated, "from NERV. I know it must be odd hearing from me after so long, but I'd like to ask you a few questions."

"Fire away." There was a barely noticeable slur in Asuka's words. Was she drunk?

"What do you know about the Artificial Angels?" Ritsuko asked.

"I know you'd be killed if you kept digging into that," Asuka stated simply. "You know They're always listening. People are talking now, but if I tell you the truth, They would find you."

"What about you?" Ritsuko asked.

"They know better than to come after me," Asuka stated simply. "Good bye."

"Shinji Ikari." There wasn't a single sound from the other end of the line for so long that Ritsuko began to wonder if the former Second Child had hung up.

"He's a monster," Asuka stated suddenly. "No. . .he's not anymore. He used to be a monster. . .my monster. My Berserker. Now he's nothing. Just a man with that bitch." Then the other line clicked, showing that Asuka had hung up.

Ritsuko leaned back in her chair. A man with that bitch? How the hell did Asuka know that Shinji was living with Misato? And more importantly, Asuka had called him a berserker.

The Berserker was the only known Seraphim class Angel. He was the leader of the Angels. Nobody knew anything about him; his name, his ethnicity, nothing. Hell, most of his powers were largely unknown. Nothing had ever been as powerful as he was.

That begged the question; could the Berserker make himself pass for human so authentically that he could even fool a machine? She needed to talk to someone about this.

(:ii:)

Misato frowned as she tossed and turned in her bed. This was ridiculous. Everything was different from how it had been last week. Her life had finally made a turn for the better, so why the hell couldn't she sleep?

Ever since the Third Impact, it had been nearly impossible for her to sleep. She'd lie in bed for hours until finally exhaustion claimed her in the early hours of the morning and then she'd sleep till noon. Trips to psychiatrists had yielded only confusing psycho babble and trips to Ritsuko had yielded nothing. Despite the blonde's desire to help, she feared the consequences of medication.

The lecture Misato had gotten about dependency and addiction had quickly cooled her to the idea of pressing the matter. She knew she had a drinking problem and one such vice was enough for the time being.

So, here she lay, night after night. "God damn it." Misato sat up and contemplated grabbing her customary midnight snack, but Hancock's warnings of expanding girth caused her to hesitate. After a moment of consideration, Misato climbed to her feet. Fuck Hancock and his Nazi workout plans. She was an adult and she could eat when she wanted.

Misato shuffled out of her room and began hunting through the fridge. She found some leftovers from that night's dinner and grinned. That was much better than her average midnight snack. She pulled it out and set it on the table as she stared contemplatively at the microwave. Should she risk it? How long was something supposed to go into a microwave to reheat it? Ritsuko always told her to take what she was thinking and halve it.

Well, Shinji had been cooking this roast for hours, so it should take an hour, right? If she halved that, than it should take thirty minutes, right? Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard the telltale creaking of someone walking on the floor in Shinji's room. "Oh thank Christ." Shinji would know how to reheat the roast. Plus, if he was awake, she could ask if he wanted to join her.

Misato made her way to his door and pressed her ear against it. There was no doubt, he was up and about. "Hey Shinji?" The footsteps froze. "Could you help me with the microwave real quick?" No one answered and Misato frowned. "I heard you moving Shinji, I know you're awake." Still he didn't answer. "Jerk." Misato pulled the door open and scowled as she stepped into the darkness on the other side. After a moment of fumbling she found the light switch and flipped it. The lights snapped on and Shinji nearly sprang out of his bed. "Very funny Shinji."

"What?" Shinji rasped, blinking owlishly in the light. "What's the big idea?"

"I know you were up," Misato stated. "I heard you walking around."

"I was asleep," Shinji stated, knuckling the sleep out of his remaining eye. Misato stared at him.

"I heard you walking around," she insisted. "Your floor creaks." She shifted her weight and the floorboards groaned. "See?"

"I was asleep," Shinji stated. "Did you have a nightmare or something?"

"But. . ."

"I'm tired Misato," Shinji interrupted. "Do you want to sleep in here or something, little girl?" Misato scowled at him.

"I was not having a nightmare," she growled. Shinji snorted and rolled over. "Fine, smartass." Misato turned out the lights and crossed the room in three strides and climbed onto Shinji's bed. "Move over."

"Huh?" Shinji grunted intelligently.

"You offered," Misato stated as she pushed back against Shinji, shifting her hips a little more than really necessary. "Sweet dreams Shinji."

(:ii:)

Asuka scowled as she stared down at the scene through Shinji's open window. She had been careless. What would she have done if Misato had just walked in instead of knocking? She had let Ritsuko's call get under her skin.

Asuka watched as Shinji slowly relaxed and his breathing evened out. It was still so alien to see his face at peace. Asuka didn't want a peaceful Shinji, she wanted her Shinji, her Berserker. Was it really possible that he was gone?

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Alright folks, been a while since this one got an update. Classes are over for now, so I've got a bit of free time to build up a surplus of chapters again, I hope.

Now for some complaining. Obama smokes and uses a Zune. So? you may ask. What's the big deal with that? To me personally, I don't give a flying fuck, but to some reporters, this is more pressing than Iraq, India, and the American economy combined. Holy shit. You know, the world will be going to hell in a hand basket and American media will still be putting celebrities on the front page.

Actually, that's exactly what's happening right now.

That's the media for you, making an anthill into the apocalypse and keeping you up to date with celebrities despite the fact that people are dying in rather big numbers around the world. But who cares about that? Like Sinatra says, That's life.


	7. Chapter 7

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Seven

Misato frowned and blinked in the morning sunlight. She had forgotten that Shinji's windows faced the rising sun. It wasn't an unpleasant way to wake up. What was an unpleasant way to wake up was Shinji's wailing alarm clock. The man slept like a log and he knew it. The alarm had to be ten times louder than anything Misato had ever heard before. Shinji began to stir and Misato reached for the alarm clock. Unable to locate the snooze button, she grabbed the electrical cord and gave it a tug. The alarm fell mercifully silent and Misato turned in Shinji's arms so she could barrow her face into his chest and hide from the sun.

She much preferred pleasant wake up calls, but at the moment, all wakeup calls be damned. She was comfortable and she was not getting out of bed for anything.

(:ii:)

Shinji Ikari was a sound sleeper. He knew this. It wasn't hard to tell just from the many stages of awareness he passed through on his journey towards waking up. The first thing he became aware of was warmth. This was rather odd considering that he much preferred cooler temperatures to the point of sleeping with the window open and used only a sheet.

Further awareness came in the form of realization. There was something warm and soft in his arms. That was certainly very odd. Shinji opened his eye and found himself staring down into a big pair of brown eyes.

Misato was in his bed. Well, that explained the warm thing he was holding. With that taken care of, he could move on to the next questions. Why was Misato in his bed? Oh, yeah. She had barged into his room jabbering about noises. He had teased her about nightmares and she had promptly taken him up on his offer to share his bed. With these realizations in mind, he now realized that he wasn't wearing his patch.

"Sorry," he muttered as he turned away and reached for the scrap of cloth, but Misato stopped him.

"It's okay," she stated with a smile. "It doesn't bother me." Shinji had to smile.

"Alright, good morning, you little tease."

"I am not a tease," Misato protested. Shinji was not impressed. His raised eyebrow said so. "Maybe a little," Misato corrected. Shinji was still not impressed. "Okay, I am a tease. You weren't complaining."

"Remind me to start complaining the next time you start gyrating in close quarters to me while I'm trying to sleep," Shinji grumbled. Misato giggled and pushed him onto his back so she could pin his shoulders. That didn't bother Shinji much; if she tried anything he could probably pitch her across the room and out his window.

"Does that mean I can do it when you aren't trying to sleep?" she asked.

"Well, that is implied," Shinji stated simply. Misato's grin widened.

"Why Shinji, one might think that you find me physically attractive," the purple haired woman commented. "One might even think you like my teasing."

"One might also think I was annoyed by your teasing," Shinji countered. He glanced at his clock and frowned. "In addition, one might wonder why his alarm clock said ten after ten."

"That's easy," Misato replied. "That's because it is ten minutes after ten."

"Then one might ask why its ten after ten when one's alarm was set for six."

"Oh, that," Misato commented sheepishly. "Well, your alarm clock woke me up."

"My alarm clock woke you up," Shinji repeated. "Imagine that, an alarm clock waking someone up. I can see how that is just such a problem." Misato laughed awkwardly.

"Sorry."

"Uh, huh." Shinji pushed her over and climbed out of bed while grabbing his patch. "Time for breakfast I suppose. What do you want?" Misato thought for a minute.

"Chocolate chip pancakes!" she declared. Shinji's mind turned to the cupboards. He should have all the necessary ingredients.

"Are you sure your strenuous exercise regiment allows that?" Shinji asked.

"I'm taking the day off," Misato countered. Shinji thought of bringing up the days off she had taken when he first arrived, but rose above the temptation.

"Very well."

(:ii:)

Misato scowled as she stared at herself in the mirror. Why couldn't Shinji, for once, be like every other man? Had he even noticed the view she was giving him while she had him pinned? Misato leaned forward and gathered her assets in her hands, pushing them together and upward against the loose-necked shirt she slept in. She definitely still had it.

"Damn it." She stared at the mirror for a good while longer until Shinji knocked on the door and nearly scared her senseless.

"Pancakes are done."

"Be right out," Misato called back. Damn it. Why couldn't Shinji be like every other guy? She knew how to deal with them. With Shinji, she was at a complete loss. Did he want her to make a move? Did he really think her somewhat subtle hints were teasing?

"They're getting cold!"

"Coming!" Misato sighed in defeat and walked out of the bathroom. She loathed to admit it, but she would be going back to Hancock tomorrow. Misato sat down and stared at the small feast laid out on her table. There was a glass of chocolate milk waiting for her. "Chocolate milk?"

"Do you really want beer with chocolate chip pancakes?" Shinji asked as he sat down across from her and sipped his coffee. Though it pained Misato to admit it, even her dulled taste buds shuddered at that combination.

"Okay, chocolate milk, but just this once."

"Mm," Shinji hummed as he loaded more bacon onto his plate and began to eat. "So, what was that nightmare about?"

"It wasn't a nightmare!" Misato protested through a mouthful of pancake. She swallowed thickly and finished her glass of milk. "I heard someone in your room!"

"Ah," Shinji replied blankly and he stood and refilled her glass. "My, what sensitive ears you must have to hear a prowler in my room, from your room."

"I wasn't in my room," Misato stated. "I was getting a midnight snack."

"So that explains why I had to throw out the leftovers," Shinji commented. "You left them out all night." Misato winced at that.

"Sorry."

"Its fine, they never taste as good the next day anyway." Shinji ate a few pieces of bacon and sipped his coffee. "Midnight snacks are bad for you. I'm sure Hancock would agree."

"I couldn't sleep," Misato replied somewhat sullenly. She didn't need a lecture.

"Why not?" Shinji pressed.

"I just can't, okay?" Misato demanded. "I haven't really been able to sleep since the Third Impact. Ritsuko sent me to a shrink, but that idiot just started babbling about hidden desires for my father. Damn Freudians."

"Actually, Freud didn't come up with the Electra Complex," Shinji stated.

"Well, it sounds like something he would come up with," Misato countered.

"I'll give you that," Shinji allowed. "Why not try sleeping pills?"

"Ritsuko figured that I'm just an addictive person," Misato answered quietly. "Apparently, it's a lot easier to overdue sleeping pills than alcohol and the two together are ever worse. I'm just trying to catch some Z's, not take a dirt nap." Shinji chuckled slightly at her wording despite the seriousness of the topic.

"Well, if it helps, feel free to sleep with me," he said simply. Misato stared at him, a thousand different jokes sitting on the tip of her tongue. Instead she smiled.

"Thanks Shinji. I'll try not to overdue it."

"You saw that I'm a heavy sleeper," Shinji replied with a shrug. "It wouldn't bother me if you crashed there every night. Just no more shaking your ass."

"I was not shaking my ass!" Misato argued with great dignity. "I was just trying to get comfortable." Shinji raised that damn eyebrow again and said nothing. "Fine. No more shaking my ass unless you ask for it."

"I suppose that's the best deal I'm going to get." Shinji returned to his coffee, but glanced up quickly. "And no more of this turning off my alarm clock."

"How about you get up at a reasonable hour?" Misato countered.

"Six is reasonable."

"For the working class, you free loading bum," Misato teased, poking him in the arm. "Eleven." Shinji looked to be on the verge of pointing out that it was his alarm clock and his room.

"Seven."

"Ten thirty."

"Seven."

"Ten."

"Seven."

"Eight?"

"Fine."

"Yeah!"

(:ii:)

Ritsuko scrubbed at her eyes tiredly and stared at her laptop. It had been an allnighter and she had nothing to show for it. That was not how things normally ran. Normally, Ritsuko sat down at her computer and ten minutes later had all the answers she needed.

"Damn it." She was taking it slow out of fear of discovery, but her curiosity was killing her. She skimmed over the screen and frowned as she noticed a familiar name. "Doctor Alicia Moore." Ritsuko had worked on her doctorate with that woman and would even go so far as to call her a friend. According to the information on the screen, Alicia had been involved in the early stages of the CAS.

Ritsuko hunted through the overstuffed drawers of her desk and cursed. Her contact book had to be here somewhere. After nearly ten minutes she had to admit defeat. Now where the hell had she left that thing? A thought struck and Ritsuko turned, somewhat hesitantly, to look at her phone. Yes, there was her book of phone numbers, sitting right by the phone. "I must be cracking up." She climbed to her feet and leafed through the book quickly. It didn't take long, she only had a handful of names and numbers. She found the number and punched it into her phone. It rang a few times before the other line was picked up.

"Hello?"

"Allie?"

"Ritsuko!" Alicia replied happily. "It's been a while."

"I've been busy," Ritsuko stated.

"Yes, I read your last paper," Alicia commented. "You must be bored. You've started researching and writing about things you were talking about in college." Ritsuko had to laugh.

"That's true," she replied. "You haven't published anything in a while."

"True. I take it you wouldn't believe me if I said I was on hiatus," Alicia said thoughtfully.

"No," Ritsuko answered. "Actually, I know what you've been doing and I want to speak with you about it."

"No specifics," Alicia said sharply. "The system they have is more or less aimed for keywords."

"I figured," Ritsuko stated. "Even They can't listen to every conversation of Earth."

"So you know about Them," Alicia murmured. "That's why you didn't publish for so long."

"That's right," Ritsuko answered. "Where are you living now?"

"Nagano," Alicia stated. "I was in Europe for a while, but I ended up coming back here."

"Seems to be a popular change of location," Ritsuko murmured.

"What?"

"Nothing," Ritsuko replied. "Listen, I'm in Tokyo-3. What do you say I come meet you and we have lunch together?"

"Sounds good," Alicia stated. "There's a little French diner near my apartment. Let me give you my cell number so you can call me when you get close."

"Alright." Ritsuko hung up her phone and began searching for her keys.

(:ii:)

"Hey Ritsuko!" Ritsuko smiled and hugged her old friend.

"How are you doing Allie?"

"I'm fine," Alicia replied as she waved Ritsuko into a seat at the table she had just been sitting at. Ritsuko sat down and ordered a glass of iced tea from the waiter.

"How's your dad?"

"Well, retirement treated him pretty much like he thought it would," Alicia stated. "He's dead."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Ritsuko commented. She had meant Alicia's father several times when he had visited his daughter at college. He had been a big friendly guy. "You aren't surprised, are you?"

"The man was an eighty year old retired US Marine infantryman," Alicia stated with a laugh. "He had a bad back, bad knees, bad ankles, drank like a teenager, had a pack a day habit, and had been dipping tobacco for so long that he could swallow the stuff. I'm amazed he made it as far as he did."

"He always said he never wanted to be an old geezer," Ritsuko commented. Alicia laughed and nodded.

"So, what do you want to know about?" Ritsuko had to smile. Alicia never had been one for beating around the bush. The blond leaned forward more out of habit than any thought that they were being spied upon.

"I want to know about the Beserker," she stated. Alicia stared at her suspiciously.

"What makes you think I know anything about him?" she asked.

"You were involved with the CAS at the beginning," Ritsuko stated. "I've spoken with Asuka Sohryu. She was the first CAS agent and she seemed to know a lot about the Berserker." It was a bit of a bluff. Asuka had mentioned Shinji being a berserker, but not the berserker. Alicia still looked uncertain so Ritsuko pulled her trump card. "Tell me about Shinji Ikari." Slowly, a small, tired smile crept across Alicia's face.

"So that was Shinji's family name," the woman stated quietly. "I always wondered what the Berserker's full name was."

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Yes, I know it's extremely short. I've been busy, plus, all I needed was a quick bridge chapter. This is the chapter where the build up is going to start. Anyway, Merry Fucking Christmas. I'm working on a little holiday ditty, but I'm not entirely sure it'll be up in time. It won't be much, but it will be a Merry Christmas with the C-Man.

Now, I have a very important, to me, bitch session. Toonami was canceled. It happened in September and I just found out about it because I didn't watch it anymore. I know it's stupid because I haven't watched Toonami in years, but it still feels like something important is gone. I went on youtube and watched the show's closing message. If you close your eyes and listen, it's not the stupid Thomas the Tank Engine Tom saying goodbye, but the old Tom, or at least Tom2 or Tom3.

I probably stopped watching Toonami as a whole in 2001. I still watched a few shows for a couple more years, but by 2004, I just didn't watch any of it save Megas XLR.

My friends and I talked about it and someone said that the show hadn't changed, we had. He said that if we were the same age we had been when Toonami first started, we would probably like these programs. He's full of shit. How do we know? Because we, at our current age, would still watch a lot of the original shows. That was the thing about Toonami, people of all ages loved it. As it went on, it just got aimed at younger and younger kids. Another problem was Toonami's later Japanese fetish. Originally, Toonami played both cartoons and anime. The only requirement was that it be good and action-oriented. Later it seemed that as long as it was anime or anime-styled Toonami would run it. Sadly, just because it's anime, does not make it good.

I guess by taking Toonami off the air, Cartoon Network has finally admitted that they fucked the pooch with what was their cash cow. I hope that someone somewhere realizes that they fucked it up. That before they took charge, Toonami was popular and now it's gone.

I really wish they had brought back Sara and the Absolution to say goodbye.


	8. Chapter 8

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Eight:

"Shinji Ikari," Alicia mused as she sipped her drink. "We never called him that. Most people didn't even know his first name. They called him by his designation, like he wasn't even a human being. He was the third."

"I know," Ritsuko replied. "Does his having been an Eva pilot have anything to do with him becoming an Angel?"

"Eva pilot?" Alicia asked. "He piloted one of those giant robots?"

"He was the Third Child," Ritsuko stated. "Isn't that what you were talking about when you called him the third?"

"No," Alicia answered. "He was the third angel to be officially discovered."

"Who were the other two?" Ritsuko asked.

"Well, you've been talking to the first," Alicia stated. "I don't know why Asuka was treated so different. The second and third were nothing more than test subjects, but Asuka wasn't even kept at the testing facility. Hell, I only saw her once and I don't think she was supposed to be there at the time."

"What about the second?"

"I don't know her name," Alicia stated sadly. "She never spoke when anyone was around. I know she talked to the third. . .I mean, Shinji." Ritsuko thought for a moment.

"Blue hair," she ventured, "red eyes and really pale?"

"That's her," Alicia replied. "Was she an Eva pilot too? I knew Asuka was, she bragged about it all the time and you just told me Shinji was a pilot."

"She was," Ritsuko answered. "Her name was Rei Ayanami."

"I see." Alicia finished her drink and ordered something much stronger. "So, the first three were former Eva pilots."

"Could there be a correlation?" Ritsuko asked.

"Maybe," Alicia answered. "Only one in every few hundred thousand became Angels, so the odds of all three Eva pilots converting are pretty bad. Of course, that can't be everything. It wouldn't explain all the other Angels in the world. Maybe it's all just a coincidence."

"Do you really believe that?" Ritsuko asked. Coincidence had never been a favored word to scientists.

"Well, considering the two most powerful angels were both ex-Eva pilots, I doubt it," Alicia returned.

"Shinji and Asuka?" Ritsuko asked.

"Asuka and Rei," Alicia corrected. "Originally, Shinji had almost no power. Rei had amazing power, but was unable to use it due to physical frailty." Ritsuko pondered at that. The last time she had seen the First Child, the girl had been in fine shape. Had the Third Impact caused her infirmity?

"You said there was a testing facility," Ritsuko commented. "You also implied that Rei and Shinji were kept there against their will."

"With what the scientists did to them, there was no way those two would willingly remain," Alicia stated, her eyes slipping away from Ritsuko's face. There was something akin to shame on her face. "The scientists. . .we were told to find out everything they could about the Angels." Ritsuko stared at the other women.

"You experimented on them?" she asked in horror.

"We did," Alicia stated. There were tears growing in her eyes. "We were excited. These were the first of a possible new species. The abilities they showed were remarkable. We could save millions of lives if we could just find out how they ticked. As the years passed, the excitement wore off. We realized that these were people. By then, it was far too late. I don't blame Shinji for anything. The Angels deserve their revenge."

"What did you do to them?" Ritsuko asked. Alicia turned back to her and laughed mirthlessly.

"Nothing you wouldn't have done," she stated blankly. Ritsuko jerked back at the statement. Those words stung deeply and made her wonder if the other woman was right.

"Tell me everything."

(:ii:)

"What do you know, the system does work," Alexander grunted as he watched the meeting taking place across the street from him. "What are they talking about?"

"The Berserker," Harris stated, keeping his directional microphone pointed at the two women. "I can't believe this shit."

"Keep focused," Alexander ordered. He knew the men he worked for might not be the white knights, but they were the big guns on the human side. What with being human and all, Alexander would follow them.

"Holy shit," Harris murmured. "This war, it's all SEELE's fault."

"You going to turn into an angel?" Alexander cut in.

"Not that I know of," Harris replied in a confused tone.

"Well, unless you plan on becoming one of them, you're pretty much stuck on our side," Alexander stated. "That means that you work for the guys upstairs. They may have started things, but they're going to be the ones that help mankind finish it."

"A deal with the devil," Harris grumbled. As one of SEELE's premier go-to teams, Alexander's group was well aware of just who was pulling the strings.

"You got a name for me, yet?" Alexander asked, lowering his binoculars and glancing back at the third member of their team. He was using a laptop with a satellite hookup to look for the identity of Miss Akagi's friend.

"Alicia Moore," Wilson answered. "She's got an alphabet of letters after her name that's almost two lines long. I'm just going to say doctor."

"I see," Alexander replied.

"As Harris knows by now," Wilson added, "she was part of SEELE's ART."

"Angel Research Team," Alexander murmured.

"You mind if I pack up?" the final member of the team asked. Sherry was stationed a little ways back from the other window of the small apartment they had commandeered. His rifle was set up on a small, collapsible monopod and ready to go.

"Pack it up," Anderson ordered. "They won't do something stupid enough to necessitate a public hit and you know it."

"Yeah," Sherry grumbled as he capped his rifle's scope. He frowned and began packing the weapon away into his backpack.

"I can't believe what I'm hearing," Harris stated. "God, are we on the right side?"

"We're on the only side we can be on in this war," Alexander growled. "Now, pay attention! For once, our high-tech, fool-proof method of finding our enemies has actually found our enemies."

"They aren't our enemies," Harris growled. "They're human. The only bad thing they have is the truth."

"Do you think the angels care which humans are guilty and which aren't?" Alexander demanded. "Why don't you go say sorry? I'll send what's left of you to your parents."

(:ii:)

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" Misato wheezed. Shinji slowed his pace. He hadn't intended for his decision to go for a run to be a challenge, but that was just how Misato took it. "I'm just not used to this pace. I really do exercise a lot."

"Right." Shinji wasn't exactly the best at reading people, he knew that, but even he had to wonder who Misato thought she was fooling. "Question."

"Shoot."

"Are you on vacation, or what?" Shinji asked.

"What do you mean?" Misato panted.

"You haven't actually gone to work since I arrived," Shinji stated.

"I'm retired," Misato stated. "You know what happened after things started to settle down in Japan, don't you?"

"No." Misato laughed.

"I figured as much," she stated. Shinji finally took pity on the woman and stopped. She stumbled to a halt.

"I can keep going!" she protested.

"I'm tired," Shinji replied. He strolled up to the vending machine they had stopped in front of and bought two water bottles. "Here." Misato took the plastic bottle and swallowed half its contents eagerly. "I take it you're referring to the fallout from the Japanese government attacking the Geo-Front."

"Clean hands and innocent, horrified looks all around," Misato growled. "They insisted that the orders to execute all NERV personnel didn't come from them."

"Do you believe them?" Shinji asked. He knew it wasn't the actual Japanese government, but SEELE that had initiated the attack.

"Of course I do," Misato stated. "The government wouldn't have the balls to do that, but they do have the yellow streak to approve it."

"So, who do you think attacked the Geo-Front?" Shinji asked.

"I don't know," Misato replied. She glanced at him. "You do."

"What makes you say that?" Shinji asked. Misato's eyes narrowed.

"You know, half the fun of secrets is passing them on," she stated.

"The other half is letting people know you have secrets and not telling what they are," Shinji countered. "What's the Japanese government doing about the attack?"

"Denying of course," Misato stated, accepting the change in topic. "However, they feel it is their moral duty to monetarily support survivors since it was the JSSDF that attacked the Geo-Front. A couple of generals got forced into retirement too because they should have known better than to kill hundreds of helpless people. They're off in their plush summer houses."

"I see." Shinji sipped his water. "Don't drink it too quickly." Misato nodded and sipped her bottle more leisurely.

"You know, you can trust me, right Shinji?" Shinji raised an eyebrow at the sudden change in conversation.

"I know."

"I really hope you trust me enough to tell me the truth," Misato stated. Shinji chuckled darkly.

"I'm not avoiding telling you because I enjoy lording it over you," he stated. "Have you thought for one minute that I'm not telling you because I want to protect you?"

"Protect me from who?" Misato asked.

"Everyone," Shinji asked.

"Even you?" Misato asked, one eyebrow arching.

"Especially me," Shinji stated simply. He turned and led the way back towards the apartment.

"Not everything is dangerous," Misato pressed. "I want to know what happened to Rei and Asuka." Shinji's stomach clenched so hard he nearly doubled over. "We may have never been close, but I want to know."

"Rei's dead," Shinji snarled. "Asuka killed her and she damn near killed me."

(:ii:)

Ritsuko closed her apartment door and made a beeline for the liquor cabinet. She poured herself a tall glass of whiskey and finished half of it in one gulp. "You stupid bitch." Ritsuko spun with an uncharacteristic yelp of surprise. It had been a long time since anyone had caught her so off guard. Her surprise guest was a tall, red-haired woman. Her identity was unmistakable.

"Asuka."

"What the hell were you thinking?" the redhead hissed.

"What?" Ritsuko asked.

"They've been watching you," Asuka stated, her crimson eyes almost staring holes through Ritsuko's skull. "You should have known better."

"SEELE?" Ritsuko asked.

"Who else?" Asuka demanded. "They've been watching you ever since you were stupid enough to mention Shinji Ikari and the Berserker in one conversation over the phone." Ritsuko's eyes widened as she realized her blunder.

"Alicia!"

"Already dead," Asuka stated. "It's ironic. Every other one of SEELE's ART scientists took their own lives. Doctor Moore was actually getting past the trauma of what she and her fellows had done, but she's dead anyway." Ritsuko started to pick up her glass, but abandoned it for the bottle before staggering to her armchair. "Oh, don't worry. They won't come for you. You might still have a use."

"Have you come here just to tell me that I got an old friend killed?" Ritsuko asked finally after a few more swigs.

"No," Asuka stated. "I'm here to warn you. If this has any repercussions for Shinji, I will find you and kill you slowly." Ritsuko stared at the woman.

"Why?" she demanded, the alcohol filling her with a false sense of bravado. "Alicia told me all about you and Shinji. You hated him. The two of you took every opportunity to torture the other." Asuka shrank back slightly.

"I do hate him," she stated as she walked to Ritsuko's liquor cabinet and retrieve a second bottle of whiskey. "I hate him more than you could believe, but I need him."

"Why?" Ritsuko asked softly.

"Because I love him."

(:ii:)

Harris sighed and suppressed a shiver as he stared down at the body before him. Alicia Moore had finally stopped trembling and lay still. Now, Harris was not a squeamish man. This kill was well off into the triple digits, but in all those kills, there had never been one quite like Alicia Moore. "What the hell was the matter with her?" he demanded. "She just smiled and sat there. Hell, she even held out her arm when I pulled out the syringe."

"Check the records," Alexander said quietly as he checked the scene over. There would be no questions when someone found her. She would be just another reformed junkie who had fallen back on the needle for reasons known only to her. "Every member of SEELE's ART took their own lives except her. They couldn't take what they had done to those two kids, nor what they ended up unleashing on mankind. After her little chat with Doctor Akagi today, we probably ended up beating her to it."

"She just smiled," Harris muttered. "I finished my report on today."

"Get rid of it," Alexander ordered. "We are never allowed to commit any mention of the Berserker being alive to any form of media."

"But, we found him," Harris protested. "The CAS should be on their way to this city right damn now to finish him off."

"Do you really think SEELE would loose track of him?" Alexander asked. "They know exactly where he is."

"Then why haven't they killed him?" Harris demanded.

"He's no longer a priority," Alexander answered. Harris stared at him in disbelief. "Oh? What's this? Has the angel sympathizer turned a new page?"

"I might sympathize with the man, but he still needs to die for what he has done," Harris stated sharply. Alexander chuckled humorlessly as he led the way out of the Doctor Moore's apartment.

"Forget about it, Harris," the older agent ordered.

"So, it's just live and let live?" Harris asked in shock.

"More like live and don't bother with it," Alexander answered. "If SEELE doesn't care about the Berserker, they won't even bother with him."

"Even after all he's done?" Harris continued. "Everything he's destroyed? Everyone's he's killed?"

"SEELE doesn't care," Alexander repeated. "Sending someone to off him is just a waste of resources. Why bother if he isn't going to impede them further?"

"This is wrong."

"Wrong and right don't apply to the bosses," Alexander answered. "They'll do what's best for Them."

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Wow, this is getting easier. Of course, it's falling back into more normal waters. Damn, I'm going to have to make sure I keep it romance and not just fall apart completely.

Well, I hope everyone had a good New Year. I was a wee bit tipsy. I guess half a handle of Captain Morgan will do that. And that was only at the party. I went home to spend the actual New Year with my parents and little brother. While there I consumed another, smaller, bottle of Captain Morgan. Don't get me started on the 100 proof Captain Morgan Black Cask.

Oh, and the first chapter of that Naruto ditty I've been fiddling with is almost done. I still have no idea if I'm going to post it, but I think it's funny. I discovered that Naruto may just be in keeping with my type of main character. He's loud, annoying, powerful and a bonehead. That's my traditional main character type and he's not even OOC.

In addition, did you know that there's a profanity filter? I have no fucking clue where it filters profanity out. Maybe I just fucking overloaded it. Shit. My bad. I'm an asshole. Well, it's disabled now. The poor fucking thing can rest in peace now.


	9. Chapter 9

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Nine:

Ritsuko and her houseguest sat silently as they nursed their drinks. She wasn't going to mention Asuka's last statement. The blond had known the confusion and rage that came of loving someone you hated. "Just tell me one thing, Asuka. Is Shinji a threat to Misato?" The red haired women looked up with a saddened expression.

"I don't know," she stated. "He isn't my Shinji anymore, not really. I used to know exactly what made him tick. I could tell you what he was about to do long before he did it. Now, I don't know. After our last fight, it seemed like all the fight ran out of him, all the fire and all the life too. He seemed almost like a zombie walking out of Berlin. He could walk and talk, but he was empty inside. Then he came here and he just changed."

"Why?" Ritsuko asked.

"Because of her," Asuka spat bitterly. "It's all that bitch's fault!"

"Misato?" Ritsuko guessed. She suddenly felt afraid for her old friend, more afraid than when Ritsuko had discovered that Shinji was the Berserker.

"I should kill her," Asuka raged suddenly, climbing to her feet. "Maybe that would bring him back." Suddenly all the rage drained out of the former Second Child and she collapsed back into her seat. "That's a lie. It's not her fault. It's mine. I'm the reason I don't have my Shinji around any more. If I killed her, would it really bring him back? He's so different now, even from when we lived together."

"When you worked for NERV?" Ritsuko pressed, trying to steer the conversation away from killing Misato.

"No," Asuka mumbled, her chin falling to her chest as she stared at the floor. "When Shinji, Rei and I lived together." The woman suddenly let out a sob. "Oh God, Rei. I'm sorry." With that, Asuka began to cry, leaving Ritsuko with even more questions and absolutely no answers.

(:ii:)

"How about this one?" Misato asked, holding up one of the movies she kept in the cabinet under her television.

"Whichever is fine," Shinji stated as he read his book. Misato scowled. Ever since their talk he had withdrawn into himself, using the book to pretend that he wasn't a thousand miles away, or maybe several years in the past.

"If you don't pick something, I'm going to find the sappiest, most disgusting romance I can find," Misato warned.

"That's fine," Shinji stated blankly, finally turning a page after having stared at the same one for hours. 'Stupid!' Misato raged. 'You just had to keep asking, didn't you? You knew he didn't want to talk about it, and you kept right on asking. Do you really give a damn about the girls, or was it all about your curiosity?'

"I warned you," Misato stated, more for something to say than anything else. She pushed the DVD into the slot on her television and sank down into the couch next to Shinji. The opening captions rolled, but neither was watching it. Misato had never been good with awkward silences. "I'm sorry."

"That's fine," Shinji replied without looking up from his book. Misato scowled and snatched the book out of his hands. He stared down at the space his book had been occupying for a moment before finally turning to look at her. "I was reading that."

"No you weren't," Misato countered, tossing the book on the coffee table. "Since you weren't reading, maybe you'd care to listen to me."

"Alright, shoot."

"I said I was sorry," Misato stated.

"Don't worry about it," Shinji replied, reaching for his book. Misato intercepted his arm by grabbing his wrist.

"I thought you said you'd listen to me," Misato commented.

"I am listening," Shinji stated, gently tugging her hand from his wrist. "You're apologizing for nothing. You had a right to know."

"I didn't need to know if it was going to make you mad," Misato grumbled.

"I'm not mad," Shinji stated. "I'm distracted. I try not to think about them because I can't stop once I do." He stood up suddenly. "I need a beer." Misato watched his disappear into the kitchen before returning with a six pack. He sat back down and opened one of his beers. "So, what's the movie?"

"The sappiest, most disgusting romance I can find," Misato replied.

"Why the hell would you put that in?" Shinji asked.

"Because you agreed to it," Misato stated, happy to have him back.

"Well, we can skip this," Shinji stated as he shot back his beer and turned off the movie.

"Hey," Misato protested, even though she hadn't liked that particular movie since she had been in college.

"I'm tired of nights in," Shinji stated, staring at his next can speculatively. "How about a late dinner?"

"How about a little clubbing?" Misato pressed.

"How old are you?" Shinji asked, one eyebrow rising. Misato slugged him in the shoulder for that question.

"You aren't allowed to ask!" she proclaimed.

"I'm too old for clubbing," Shinji stated. "I'd hate to break your heart, but you are older than me."

"You like older women, don't you?" Misato teased, crossing her legs and looping her leg over his. "Besides, women age differently than men."

"Sure," Shinji replied, completely nonplussed.

"So you do like older women," Misato stated. Shinji chuckled and drank another beer.

"So, anything you want to do?"

"Clubbing!" Misato insisted.

"So you can try to drag me onto a dance floor while I try to remain at the bar and grumble about the state of music?" Shinji asked. Misato thought about that for a moment.

"Maybe a nice restaurant," she suggested.

"Sounds good!" Shinji replied. Poor Shinji. He had yet to learn how devious women could be.

(:ii:)

Harris checked his camera again and went back to staring out the window. He had been here ever since leaving Alicia Moore dead on her couch.

Ritsuko Akagi had to have been onto something. That was the only reason Harris could come up with for her sudden interest in the Berserker. The woman had spent years not giving a damn and making no enquiries, so what had changed?

A quick bit of research had shown no real changes to her personal life so Harris had moved on to those nearest her. Luckily, Ritsuko Akagi's circle of friends had turned out to be more of a triangle.

That was why Harris was currently waiting outside Misato Katsuragi's apartment. He had tried to get a view inside, but the curtains had been drawn. The doors to the elevator leading upwards opened and Harris raised his binoculars automatically. So used to the routine was he that it took a few seconds for him to realize that he was staring at his target.

"Fuck!" Harris dropped his binoculars and snatched up his digital camera. He propped his elbows on the window sill and snapped a dozen quick pictures of the woman and the man she was with. The man froze mid-step and glanced around. He shot a look over his shoulder and Harris had the oddest feeling that the man had seen him despite the fact that it was too dark and Harris was a dozen stories up. Katsuragi said something and the man turned back to her, smiling brightly. He said something and Katsuragi laughed. They resumed their walk and quickly disappeared down the road.

"Spooky," Harris grumbled as he cycled through the pictures, relieved that he had caught a few clear shots of their faces. He quickly plugged the camera into his laptop and let the facial recognition system run. He had already narrowed it down so it only took a few seconds to confirm Katsuragi's identity. The man, on the other hand, turned up no matches with the Japanese government.

"Damn it." Harris widened the search and slumped in his seat. It would take hours to run the stranger's identity against the UN's database. In the meantime he went back over the notes he had compiled on Misato Katsuragi.

The Former Operations Chief on NERV was on file as being single and there were no indications of a boyfriend. That meant the man had been there less than a month tops.

"Well, at least I managed to get a lead out of this."

(:ii:)

"Misato."

"What?" Misato asked, fighting not to giggle at Shinji's annoyed tone as she surveyed the restaurant she had picked.

"I thought I said no to dancing," Shinji stated, his eye narrowing.

"You said nice restaurant," Misato corrected. "This just happens to be a nice restaurant with a dance floor and live band."

"I need to start taking notes on all your tricks," Shinji grumbled.

"Do you have reservations?" the maitre d' asked.

"Katsuragi," Misato answered. She had secretly called ahead while getting dressed. The man checked his list and smiled as he found her name.

"Of course. Right this way." Misato and Shinji tagged along after the man; trying to look somewhat like they belonged in the ritzy upped-class eating establishment.

"Posh," Shinji commented.

"Yeah," Misato agreed.

"I think we're the youngest people here," Shinji added. Misato glowed silently, partially at being called young and partially at being included in Shinji's age group. They were shown to their seats and sat down. Misato tried hard to hide her expression as she saw the prices. She had really only picked this place because it was the only nice restaurant that had dancing. "On me."

"What?"

"Dinner's on me," Shinji stated.

"I picked the restaurant," Misato protested.

"It's on me," Shinji stated finally, "and don't you dare try to skimp. I live with you and cook for you. I know what you like, so you better not go cheap on my behalf." He opened one of the menus and didn't even bat an eye. "I should make you pay for this little ambush, but I'm a nice guy." Misato turned back to the menu and frowned as she viewed the beverage selection.

"I should have brought a couple cans of beer."

"I don't think they would approve of it," Shinji replied. He closed his menu and set it down as the waiter appeared. "What do you want?"

"I'm not very hungry," Misato stated. Shinji promptly ordered steaks for both of them, salads, and a bottle of wine with a name Misato couldn't even pronounce. "I said I wasn't hungry."

"You haven't eaten since lunch," Shinji replied.

"And why are you so sure?" Misato demanded suspiciously.

"Because I haven't smelled anything burning since I made lunch," Shinji replied.

"I can cook!" Misato protested. "You just cook better."

"Sure."

(:ii:)

Harris cast one last glance out the window of his newly commandeered suite and finished packing up his observation equipment. Maya Ibuki was almost certainly a dead end. A few hours of watching her had revealed nothing odd. She finished work, went out with a few friends and went home.

With Harris's timetable, he didn't have time for weeks to months of observation. He had days before he was expected to be back in Belgium. Alexander had given him some time to clear his head. What Harris was doing now probably wasn't considered clearing his head.

He buckled his case shut and opened his laptop. There had to be results by now. Indeed there were.

"No positive identification," Harris read, "just fucking wonderful." Third Impact had been an intelligence bonanza. With the slow trick of returnees and the widespread fear and panic, intelligence agencies had managed to compile pretty damn accurate lists of everyone on Earth. Sure there were a few who slipped through the cracks, but they were few and far between.

Miss Katsuragi's new boyfriend was apparently one of them.

"Shit." Harris closed his laptop and packed it up. He had a meeting in twelve hours.

(:ii:)

"You can dance!" Misato giggled as Shinji escorted her out of the restaurant.

"Never said I couldn't," Shinji replied. He had an arm wrapped tightly around her waist, waiting for her next stumble. Misato would never admit it, but good wine had a habit of sucker punching her. With half a good sized bottle flowing through her, she wasn't exactly sure footed. "You want to get a cab?"

"We're only a few blocks away," Misato replied. She wasn't exactly sure she wanted to be cooped up in the back of a stuffy, wildly bouncing vehicle. Her, relatively, modest heels would be nothing compared to projectile vomiting.

"Alright." Misato leaned on him a little more heavily. "I told you, you were hungry."

"Don't you start," Misato ordered. Shinji chuckled. "That steak was amazing, although. Actually, everything was amazing."

"For that kind of money, it'd better be," Shinji stated, loosening the tie he was wearing. "So, going back to Hancock tomorrow?"

"Yup," Misato replied. "He said I should try kickboxing too."

"Sounds like fun," Shinji commented. Misato groaned.

"Only men would think that smacking punching bags is fun."

"Actually, I know quite a few women who like various marshal arts," Shinji replied.

"Friends from Scotland?" Misato asked.

"Correct." They continued on in silence until they reached Misato's apartment and took the elevator up to the correct floor. They strolled up the door and Misato opened it.

"You know," she began, "this is usually the part where you go in for the goodnight kiss."

"But I live here," Shinji stated blankly. Misato tried to sigh in defeat, but found it difficult as a pair of lips covered her own. "Happy?" Shinji asked teasingly as he leaned back and walked towards his room. "Want to watch a movie?"

"Sure," Misato replied, blushing as she realized that she was still standing in the open doorway, frozen like a teenage girl given her first kiss. "How about a sappy romance?"

"Isn't that what drove us out of the apartment the first time?" Shinji asked.

"So, a comedy then?"

"Sounds good."

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Sorry about last week. College is picking up again. At least I got my favorite professor again. This guy is great. He's a crotchety, sarcastic, bitter old guy. He's like an older version of me.

Let's see, what is there to rant about? I can't think of anything new or interesting to rant about. Well, other than I have a few ROTC cadets in one of my classes. God damn they look young. Young and motivated. Young, motivated, and jonesing to run off to war and get medals. Was I ever like that?

Oh, and thanks to everyone sending me story recommendations. I'm really enjoying them. Although, does anyone know the title of the Naruto story were Naruto and Sasuke are stuck in a loop and decided to sail for adventure, profit, booze, and hot chicks? I forgot to favorite it and now I can't find it. Well, it's more like I refuse to sift through all that horse shit over there. So, help a brother out?

P.S. I was just cleaning out my e-mail account, which I actually never have and found dozens of PMs. I know I get busy, but I try to answer all the PMs I get. I don't think I've been keeping up like I should and I apologize. I'm really going to work to responding to personal messages and whatnot. Thanks for your patience.


	10. Chapter 10

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Ten:

'This is unexpected,' Ritsuko decided as she watched the formed Second Child cry. The blond felt the strangest urge to say something, but she had never been very good at comforting people. Instead she rose and grabbed another bottle from her bar. "Here."

"Thanks," Asuka managed, dropping her empty bottle and seizing the fresh one. Ritsuko wasn't quite sure about this route, but it seemed as good as any she could think of.

"You know," Ritsuko began awkwardly as she sat back down, "I think I can understand your situation." This was a risk, but a necessary one and not really a fallacy.

"How could you think that you understand me, human?" Asuka demanded, glaring at Ritsuko even as tears continued to well in her eyes.

"I loved someone who hurt me very badly once," Ritsuko stated. "I knew it was a horrible relationship, but I still loved him." Asuka let out a sharp, harsh laugh.

"He didn't hurt me," she stated. "I hurt him. I hurt both of them so bad that I wish I was dead in her place." Ritsuko recognized the speech patterns. Even an Angel couldn't put away a full bottle of eighty-proof without some affects.

"What did you do to them, Asuka?"

"I gave them to SEELE," Asuka stated, staring down at the bottle in her lap. "I betrayed their trust and delivered them to those bastards."

"Why?"

"Because they loved each other," Asuka stated. "I wanted them to love me too. I wanted it so bad. They had each other and I had no one! I just couldn't take it." Ritsuko wondered how far she could push, but realized that she didn't really care.

"Tell me everything." Asuka glanced up, but her eyes didn't really focus on Ritsuko.

"We washed up together after the Third Impact," she stated.

"You, Shinji and Rei?" Ritsuko pressed.

"No," Asuka answered. "Me and Shinji. We were the first returnees. Rei was already there, or so I was told. I don't remember those first weeks well. I kept fading in and out of coherence and I was so weak. Rei and Shinji took care of me. I remember it vaguely. After about two weeks I became more coherent and my strength started returning.

When other returnees began to wash up, we decided to move further inland, away from the shore. It was the first time I actually left the little bungalow we had been living in. I was still weak, so Shinji carried me sometimes. He carried me for miles without complaining. I never knew he was that strong."

"Why did you leave the shoreline?" Ritsuko asked.

"We knew we were different, even then," Asuka stated. "Rei knew all about what we had become. She told us what had actually happened during the Third Impact, at least as far as she knew. She also taught me the basics of how to control my powers."

"Rei knew more than the basics," Ritsuko commented.

"She did," Asuka allowed, "but using her powers weakened her. She was never in the best health, but any use of her powers seemed to exacerbate her condition." Ritsuko frowned as she considered that. Alicia had mentioned that Rei had been frail.

"What about Shinji?" Ritsuko asked. "Did he learn how to use his powers?"

"No," Asuka stated. "He didn't care. I don't think I ever saw him use them once until Rei died. After that, I wished I never had."

(:ii:)

"Beer?"

"Sure," Misato took the offered drink and wrapped her towel around her shoulders. To her annoyance, Shinji didn't even seem to notice that her sleepwear clung to her still damp body. "Nothing like a hot shower after spending too long in heels."

"I'll take your word for it," Shinji replied. Misato laughed and collapsed onto the couch next to the younger man. He had changed out of his formal clothes and turned on the news.

"Anything good happen in the world?"

"If anything good did happen, do you really think it would be on the evening news?" Shinji countered.

"Well, maybe at the end," Misato answered, "in passing. Maybe."

"No good news." Misato shrugged and leaned against Shinji. It was stupid, but the outside world felt less real when she was with him. "I wonder why I bother."

"Morbid curiosity?" Misato guessed.

"Must be," Shinji agreed. He yawned and stretched. "I give up. It's bed time."

"Want to sleep in my room?" Misato asked. She immediately regretted it, but Shinji didn't decide to tease her on it. No, he decided to go after her laziness instead.

"You must really hate my alarm clock."

"No, I hate your tiny bed," Misato replied. Shinji chuckled.

"I take it, that's your way of telling me that I'm going to have a sleeping buddy?"

"If you don't mind," Misato replied tentatively.

"I told you I didn't," Shinji stated firmly with a smile. "Any time you need, don't be afraid to climb in, okay?"

"Thanks Shinji."

"No problem. Now I'm going to take a shower and go to sleep. I suggest you turn in soon too. You still have an appointment to keep tomorrow."

"Don't remind me," Misato grumbled.

(:ii:)

"Good afternoon Mister Harris."

"Not really," Harris stated. "I'm jet lagged as a son of a bitch." The other man chuckled and sat down across from him before examining the small outdoor, café they were sitting in.

"Well, super sonic transports will do that," he stated. "You were in Japan. I believe they're behind us by a good several hours. It's the middle of the night there, I think. I'm Joshua."

"Harris," Harris said simply as he shook the man's hand. "Thank you for agreeing to meet me."

"It's not a problem," Joshua stated. "If your problem is what you think it is, this is rather important."

"That's what I though, but I seemed to be alone in that opinion." Harris reached for the briefcase by his chair and pulled out his laptop. He set it down on the table and flipped it open. "I was hoping you could look at a few pictures for me."

"No problem," Joshua replied. Harris brought up the pictures he had taken and turned the top of his laptop to face the other man. Joshua stared at the screen for a moment before slowly taking off his sunglasses to reveal bright, crimson eyes. "Where did you take these pictures?"

"So, you know this man?" Harris asked calmly.

"Where did you take this picture?" the irate CAS operative repeated coldly.

"Japan," Harris stated. "Who is this man, Joshua?"

"You know damn well who he is," Joshua replied. "It's unmistakable. That face was burned into my brain. I knew something was up. They said that Sohryu killed him."

"You didn't believe it?" Harris asked.

"Fuck no," Joshua replied. "Sohryu and the Berserker liked their game. I don't think either wanted it to end. They were only happy when the other was miserable." Joshua stared at the picture. "Interesting."

"What?" Harris asked.

"This eye that he's missing," Joshua noted, "it's his angel eye."

"What do you mean?"

"Not many know, but the Berserker has heterochromia," Joshua stated. He must have noticed Harris's expression. "Different colored eyes. His left was red and his right was blue. We called the red eye his angel eye."

"Is that natural for angels?" Harris asked.

"He's the only one we've ever seen," Joshua answered. "Of course, it's a rare trait in humans, so it might just be a rare trait in angels too."

"I thought the eyes always turned red," Harris commented.

"They do," Joshua replied. "Of course, natural angels can suppress their powers and return to their original eye color. No one's quite sure if his eye color has any kind of significance, but there are theories."

"Such as?" Harris pressed.

"The most prevalent is that his left eye wasn't his to begin," Joshua replied. "Of course, that makes one wonder who it belonged to first and how the hell is ended up in his head. Now, where exactly did you find him?"

"If I tell you, can I count on you to react appropriately?" Harris asked as he packed up his laptop. Joshua chuckled dryly.

"I see you've been made aware of the flaws with artificial angels," he commented. "The more powerful they get, the crazier they get. I take it, that's why you selected me, a low ranked member of the CAS."

"Yes," Harris replied. "Can you handle it?"

"If SEELE has decided to cover him up, then there must be a reason," Joshua stated. "I'm going to investigate it first."

"Will you keep me appraised?" Harris asked.

"I will," Joshua replied. "Hell, I might need your help. I'm a soldier, not a detective." Harris scribbled down the address and his number.

"Here. That's my cell. I'm sure you're aware of the dangers of phones."

"I am," Joshua replied. "You're going to some awful long lengths to get this guy."

"Well, you know what the Bible says," Harris stated, "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth."

"I was thinking something else," Joshua commented as he stared down at the paper. "Vengeance is mine sayeth the lord."

(:ii:)

Asuka stared down at the bottle in her hand. What the hell was she doing? Well, that was a stupid question. Despite a bottle and a half of whiskey, she knew exactly what she was doing. She was spilling her guts to a woman she hadn't thought of in years.

The real question was, why the hell was she doing was she was doing?

"What was that?" Asuka glanced up to see Ritsuko staring at her.

"What?"

"You were muttering something," Ritsuko stated.

"Just thinking to myself," Asuka stated. "Did you know that I wasn't even suspicious when SEELE told me that Shinji and Rei were in quarantine? I didn't think anything of it even though I didn't see them for years."

"How did you find out?" Ritsuko asked.

"I don't know," Asuka admitted. "I found out where they were and decided to find them. I didn't bother asking SEELE, I just went. Maybe, deep down, I knew the truth and I knew I would never get in if I asked."

"What happened?"

"Well, I found them," Asuka stated. "They had been locked up for the night, but they were always being watched. I knocked out the guards and saw them for the first time in years. The room they had them in was a cell. There wasn't a bed, just a toilet against the wall. They were naked, so I could see that both of them had lost a lot of weight."

"What did you do?"

"I ran," Asuka admitted. "I was horrified and confused. It took me a day to get my head together. That was the night Rei died. Actually, she died right after I ran. When I came back the next day to get them out, Shinji had broken out. Most the building was wrecked and hundreds were dead. Two days later my family was slaughtered in their home."

"Shinji killed your family?" Ritsuko asked in shock.

"Worse," Asuka stated. I found him standing over the bodies of my dad and step mom. He had killed them slowly. He had killed my little sister too, but it had been quick for her. That was the first time we fought. The ritzy neighborhood my family lived in was completely destroyed and everyone there was killed."

"Why didn't you explain to him what had happened?" Ritsuko asked.

"It wouldn't have changed much," Asuka stated. She took a long drink from her bottle. "Besides, I wasn't thinking clearly that first time. He killed my little sister. She had nothing to do with anything and he killed her just to hurt me. I was so mad I couldn't see strait, let alone think clearly. Besides. . ."

"Besides?" Ritsuko pressed when Asuka trailed off for too long.

"Besides, the more I hurt him, the less I hurt."

(:ii:)

Shinji pushed the door to the bathroom open and stepped out into the cooler night air beyond. It felt so strange to be able to just take a long hot shower. Shinji snagged a beer and made his way to the balcony. He popped the top on his drink and watched the world rush around at a desperate pace.

Why did they always seem to be in such a hurry? They were just speeding towards the inevitable.

Shinji finished his beer and tossed in the trash before heading towards Misato's room. He stepped into the darkened room and slid the door shut. There was enough light coming in through the window that Shinji could make out Misato curled up in the middle of her bed. After some nimble footwork to avoid the random object strewn on the floor, Shinji finally climbed into Misato's bed.

"Gee Shinji, don't be shy."

"Thought you were asleep." Shinji wrapped an arm around Misato's waist and pulled her back tight to his front. "Better?"

"Much," Misato replied, her arm moving down to stop him from letting go. Shinji had to admit that it felt good to have someone in his arms again. It had been so long that he had forgotten how nice it was. They lay in silence for a while before he felt Misato shift. "Aren't you going to give me a goodnight kiss?"

"I thought I already did," Shinji murmured.

"Well, kind of," Misato returned, "but that's different. You're supposed to kiss the girl after you drop them off from a good date."

"I still say that I didn't drop you off since I live here," Shinji countered. He heard Misato let out a groan of annoyance and he had to laugh. He pressed a kiss to the back of her neck. "Does that mean you want a goodnight kiss?"

"Yes." Her answer was so quiet that Shinji could barely hear her despite being about as close as possible. Shinji frowned. That didn't sound like a joke. He pulled back slightly and pulled her onto her back so he could meet her eyes.

"You aren't teasing me, are you?"

"No, I'm not," Misato answered. She was pouting slightly. "Why do you always think I'm teasing?"

"Because you teased me for years," Shinji stated. Misato's pouted deepened.

"That's not fair. You were just a teenager than. Now you're a man."

"What do you want Misato?"

"I really want you to kiss me right now, Shinji." Shinji couldn't help it. He really couldn't.

"Okay." Shinji leaned down and kissed her. Her arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him down further as she deepened the kiss. God it felt good. Shinji used one leg to spread hers so he could rest more of his weight on her. Misato moaned happily and hooked one leg around his thigh.

Reality hit him like a ton of bricks. What the hell was he doing? Shinji pulled back and resisted when Misato tried to pull him back to her.

"Shinji?"

"What are we doing Misato?" Misato met his eyes evenly.

"We're doing what I've wanted to do since you came back," she stated simply. "Have you ever thought about it?"

"I have," Shinji admitted. Misato was a beautiful woman who liked skimpy clothes. It was hard not to think about it. Misato tried to pull him back down. "Wait."

"Why?"

"Let's wait till the morning," Shinji stated. The fact that nothing looked as good in the harsh morning light was something neither mentioned. Misato stared at his eyes for a while.

"Alright," she said finally. "We will talk in the morning." Shinji nodded and started to push himself back, but Misato stopped him again. "You aren't going anywhere."

"Alright." How did he get himself into this one?

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Morning folks. America now has a black president. I thought there was supposed to be a rainbow or something. Now, I'm not saying anything bad about Obama, I just think some people are expecting way too much. Sadly, those are the kinds of people who will suddenly turn on him one day despite any good he has done because he hasn't saved the world.

Thanks to everyone who wrote in about Reload. If you haven't read it yet, go read it. It's one of the few decent bits over in the Naruto section. It gets kind of long winded, vague, and hard to understand later on; but it's still a good, entertaining story. Note, it's not good and entertaining for a Naruto story because that's not saying much.

Alright, I have a good gripe for you. Fanfiction authors. What a bunch of over dramatic, lazy hacks. Am I right people? Of course I am. I know those people. And I kind of am one.

So, what sparked this off? How about this, I checked on an old author I loved to read who, like most authors apparently, doesn't update at all. On his bio he was saying that he quit and he never enjoyed writing and this and that and bitch and moan and shut the fuck up.

Look, authors got into this for fun. If they didn't, they wouldn't succeed. Now, maybe if no one reads their stories they can just quit, God knows most Naruto authors need to quit, but once people read their stories they kind of owe the readers something.

Now, I know authors don't get paid, but people do invest time in them to read their stories and give them their thoughts. Also, I don't know about other authors, but I like my readers. I have a few that have been kicking around with me for a long time. Getting a review from them isn't like they're some stranger; it's more like a friend. I wouldn't just quit on them out of the blue and leave everything hanging. If, for some reason, I did decide to stop writing, I'd at least try to give everyone some kind of closure.

Besides, I'm still having fun. Maybe those whiny brats should just let their inner crazy person out. It works for me and people seem to like reading the results.


	11. Chapter 11

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Eleven

Shinji groaned as he felt sensation returning to his body. Why the hell didn't he hear his alarm clock and why the hell was there a weight on his stomach? Shinji opened his eyes and found himself staring into a pair of brown eyes less than five inches from his own. "It's morning Shinji." Shinji glanced at the window and saw light filtering through before turning back to Misato.

"So it is," he replied as he took stock of his situation. Misato was sitting on his stomach, using her hands to pin his shoulders down again. She promptly kissed him. With no other option, Shinji kissed her back and allowed his hands to drift up to rest on her hips. After a moment, Misato pulled back and beamed down at him.

"Good. Now that that's over, we have to talk."

"Are you going to keep me pinned throughout this whole conversation?" Shinji asked dryly.

"I kind of like having you pinned," Misato stated. "Are you complaining?"

"Not at the moment," Shinji replied. "So, what do you want to talk about?"

"Us," Misato stated. Shinji felt rather stupid for not immediately coming to that conclusion. He decided to hide his faults and lie.

"I figured." Misato's bright grin slipped a little.

"Promise me something before I say anything else."

"Okay."

"No matter what, please don't leave me, Shinji." Shinji could feel the fear radiating off of her. He smiled and used one hand to pull her down for another, but much gentler kiss.

"I told you, I'm never going to leave you again." Misato stared down at him for a moment before she was on him in a flash, her lips sealed over his and her arms around his neck. She pulled back just a quickly and smiled down at him. She was crying.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm just really happy, dummy," Misato stated. She looked hesitant for a moment. "I think I love you Shinji."

"I love you too Misato." Misato sighed and whacked him in the head.

"No, you dummy. I _love_ you." Shinji stared up at her uncomprehendingly. That was the first time anyone had ever told him that. It had just been kind of understood that he and Rei loved each other. Neither had ever actually said it. They had never felt the need. "Well?"

"Even though you don't know about what I've done?" Shinji asked. Misato stared down at him and smiled.

"I know you and that's enough for me." This time Shinji kissed her. "Gee, is that your final answer?" she asked when he finally pulled back.

"I suppose so," Shinji replied.

"Then say it out loud," Misato ordered.

"I love you too Misato."

(:ii:)

Ritsuko moaned as a beam of sunlight drove her into the waking world. Her head felt like it was splitting in half. "You're awake." Ritsuko's eyes shot open and she stared at the woman standing by the door.

"You're still here?"

"I was just leaving," Asuka replied, her crimson eyes burning into Ritsuko. "I expect everything mentioned here to be kept confidential."

"Of course."

"I don't gain anything from killing you now," Asuka stated. "Don't give me a reason." With that, the redhead opened the door and walked out. Now, Ritsuko was not easily shaken, but if she had been standing, her knees would have given out.

"Holy shit." Ritsuko managed to push herself to her feet and stagger to her kitchen in search of pain killers. She hadn't drunk like that since college. "This is just marvelous." A quick glance at her cat-shaped clock told her that she didn't have enough time to cook for herself, so she had to grab breakfast at the Geo-Front, a place infamous for preparing breakfasts the night before and then leaving them all night till morning. "Fuck."

(:ii:)

"I don't want to work out!"

"The hardest part of working out is actually doing it," Shinji commented. "Now eat your fruit." Misato stared down at her grapefruit.

"I want pancakes."

"You'll puke," Shinji stated. Misato grumbled and dug her spoon into the grapefruit. She took a bite and stared down at the fruit in surprise.

"This is good!" Shinji just shook his head and sipped his coffee. "You should come with me."

"I do work out."

"You just run," Misato countered.

"I do a lot more than just run," Shinji stated calmly. "Quit trying to weasel out of it. Besides, aren't you going to try kickboxing today? That should be fun."

"You don't know Hancock." Shinji finished his cup of coffee. "We should get ready to go."

"We?"

"Yes, we. You're coming."

"Didn't I just say no?" Shinji asked.

"No. You said that you did work out. That isn't a no."

"I was fairly sure it was implied," Shinji commented dryly. "I guess I'll have to clarify. No."

"Too late!" Misato cheered. "You're coming with me." Shinji watched as the woman dumped what was left of her grapefruit in the sink and ran to her room. Shinji stared at the closed door and then at the mostly full pot in the coffee maker.

"God damn it."

(:ii:)

"I can't believe you were smoking." Hancock stared at his watch. He had ten more minutes before he could chock Katsuragi up as a no show. After that he could go back to his smoke break. "Smoking's bad for you."

"I know that," Hancock growled at the fitness center's secretary. "Do you think there's any possible way that I couldn't know that?"

"Aren't you supposed to tell people how to live?"

"No," Hancock growled. "I tell them how they can be healthy. I do not tell people what to do or how to live." He didn't bother to ask if the little twit thought she was healthier just because she didn't smoke.

"Hey Hancock." Hancock turned and saw his client walk into the room.

"Oh, actually showed up today. That's weird." Hancock glanced at the man standing beside the raven-haired woman. "And who might you be sir?"

"Shinji," the man stated as he stuck his hand out. "I'm the sap who got her to come and then got dragged along."

"Ah." Hancock shook the man's hand, carefully gauging his grip. "Huh. At least I won't have to work with you."

"Nope," Shinji agreed. "I'm just here for emotional support." Hancock chuckled at that.

"Alright." Hancock turned and led them from the reception area to the actual gym. "Well, have you thought any more about kickboxing?"

"I have," Misato admitted. "I'm going to give it a shot."

"Excellent." Hancock glanced at his watch. "They have an introductory class starting in about an hour. We can go through a warm up until then."

"I thought you would be teaching me," Misato commented.

"I don't do that fancy, jazzercising, kickboxing shit people like," Hancock stated. "I do mixed martial arts, mostly ground fighting. I don't think you'd enjoy that."

"Probably not."

"I'll be on the treadmills."

(:ii:)

Shinji did not like treadmills. Half the fun of running was the scenery. Being stuck in one place really stole his desire to press on. "Not bad." Shinji nearly missed a step. He tugged the treadmill's emergency stop and stepped off as it spooled down. "Eight miles in an hour," Hancock commented as he read the treadmill's display. "That's pretty good."

"Thanks," Shinji replied as he mopped at the sweat on his brow. "Did Misato's class start?"

"Right over there." Shinji glanced back and saw a fairly large group of people doing kicks and step ups.

"When you said kick boxing, I thought you meant real kick boxing."

"Normal people don't sign up for real kick boxing," Hancock replied. "They have this thing about getting hit in the face." Shinji chuckled and sipped his water bottle. "So, what branch were you in?" Shinji glanced over at the man.

"What makes you think I was in the military?"

"You look the type," Hancock stated. "I'd go fifty/fifty just on appearance, but you've got that look in your eye. You've seen some weird shit." Shinji had to laugh again.

"I'll give you that."

"Not a military man, huh?" Hancock pressed. "Huh. I'm usually really good at picking that out."

"You were in, weren't you?" Shinji asked, eager to steer the conversation away from himself.

"Still am in," Hancock stated. "I'm American Special Forces, currently assigned to the UN's security detachment here at the Geo-Front. I work as a trainer in my off time."

"How did you end up here?" Shinji asked, genuinely curious. It seemed a bit of a stretch for someone from such a legendary group of soldiers to end up working as a security guard.

"I had a bit of a falling out with my command," Hancock answered. "They told me to go fight for the UN in Europe. I told them to go fuck themselves."

"You don't like the UN?" Shinji was actually surprised by that.

"I don't like their new war," Hancock replied. "I had enough pull to get out of Europe, but they sent me to work for the UN here just to spite me."

"Seems kind of odd," Shinji commented.

"I really haven't been the same guy since my brother became an Angel," Hancock stated. "He didn't want to fight, but was forced to flee when the Blue Pattern turned up in his blood. He managed to escape when they tried to capture him. He's fighting in Europe. I still keep in contact with him."

"Odd, I thought all Angels just wanted to kill mankind," Shinji commented. He could tell that Hancock caught the sarcasm.

"It's all bullshit," Hancock stated. "I don't know what started this new war and I really don't care, but I won't fight my brother for the UN."

"So you don't think the Angels want to kill all the humans?" Shinji asked.

"Sure they do, same as how the humans want to kill all the Angels," Hancock stated. "There's no point behind it. Trust me; I've been fighting wars for a while. You know, people think soldiers are brain washed, but the truth is, soldiers just follow orders. We know when something is bullshit long before the civilians even begin to guess. So, how'd you loose that eye?"

"Fighting." Shinji didn't bother saying which war.

"For which side?"

"Does it matter?" Hancock laughed loudly at that.

"To me, hell no. I don't give a shit. Just don't start any trouble around here."

"I'll keep that in mind."

(:ii:)

Misato glanced around the gym and smiled as she spotted Shinji and Hancock chatting amiably while bench pressing what looked to be double Misato's body weight. "You two having fun?"

"Loads," Shinji hissed as the bar lowered to his chest and then rose.

"Do you even need me here?" Hancock asked. "You aren't even breaking a sweat."

"Probably not," Shinji replied as he leaned the bar back into it cradle and sat up. "How much was that?"

"Three fifty."

"Kilos?" Misato asked in shock.

"Pounds," Hancock replied. "I'm American. I think the metric system was made by the devil. How did you like your jazzercise kickboxing?"

"It was fun!" Misato exclaimed. "I was talking to the instructor and she told me that they have real kickboxing lessons tomorrow."

"I don't know if you'd like real kickboxing," Hancock warned. "If you go to that class, you are going to get smacked."

"I'm a big girl," Misato protested even though she winced on the inside. She did not want to get smacked.

"Alright," Hancock replied. "Well, that jazzercise crap is fairly decent cardio and you look like you actually worked up a sweat, so I'll be a nice guy and cut this one short. I'll talk to you after that kickboxing class tomorrow. If you really like it, I'll have to make a new exercise program."

"Why?"

"You'll need to be in good shape instead of just decent shape," Hancock stated. "Now get out of here. I need a smoke break." Misato laughed as the man walked away.

"So," Shinji ventured, "want to go out to lunch now, or are you too sore?"

"Well, I am sore, but I do want food," Misato replied. She considered it for a few seconds before looping an arm around Shinji's. "I'm hungry!"

"Food it is," Shinji agreed. Misato hesitated mid-step as she realized that she was actually looking forward to working out tomorrow. Was she actually getting into this whole healthy lifestyle thing? What was next, light beer? She stood on her toes and gave Shinji a quick peck. "What was that for?"

"Nothing."

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. God I'm getting sappy for the holiday. Anyway, I know it's short, sorry. Also, sorry about last week. Like I said, I was stuck in Fort Indian Town Gap. We had to sleep outside this year, but it was actually kind of nice out, which defeats the purpose of cold weather training. Meh, it was cold that night, cold and wet for those idiots who didn't bring a poncho. Yours truly did.

So, Happy Fucking Valentine's day. Yeah, I'm single. . .again. You know, I don't think I've ever had a girlfriend on Valentine's day. Oh well, just means I have more booze money. Or perhaps if I had a nice girlfriend I wouldn't drink so much, but where the fuck would I find a nice girlfriend?

After all, as all straight men, and gay men who started straight, will tell you, all women are bat shit insane. Even the nice ones. As a matter of fact, the nicer they seem at the beginning, the crazier they'll get. You're better off dating the ones who are crazy from the get go.

Of course, this is dating advice from the guy who is spending his Valentine's Day with Captain Morgan.

P.S. This was rushed, so feel free to hang on my every spelling and gramar error.


	12. Chapter 12

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Twelve:

Misato moaned as she collapsed down into her couch. Maybe running out to eat hadn't been the brightest idea. She should have come home and taken a hot shower before her muscles starting screaming at her. "Here." Misato rolled her head to the side and saw that Shinji had found her Aspirin and poured her a glass of water.

"Thanks." Misato quickly took the pills and put them down with a sip of water. "I didn't think you got even sorer after you were done."

"Where do you think the old joke about feeling something tomorrow came from?" Shinji asked as he sat down next to her and began unpacking their lunch from its bag.

"I never really thought about it," Misato admitted. "Looks like you made a new friend."

"Hancock's a good guy," Shinji replied with a shrug. "Take a hot shower. It'll help the soreness. I can reheat your food if it gets too cold."

"I'm too sore to get up," Misato whined.

"Then start eating," Shinji replied. Misato pouted, but took the offered bowl of noodles.

"Are you coming tomorrow?"

"To watch you get smacked?" Shinji teased. Misato frowned and punched him in the arm.

"Don't say that!" Shinji chuckled and slurped up some of his noodles.

"I guess I'll come. With you occupied, Hancock'll need someone to work out with. Well, that is unless you want to learn how to grapple?"

"No."

"It could be fun."

"So could kicking your butt," Misato countered. "No, I think that would be a sure bet."

"Maybe you should wait till you've taken a few classes before you try," Shinji suggested.

"I bet I could take you right now," Misato stated, poking him in the chest. She managed to keep a strait face for all of ten seconds. "Or not."

"You could always try," Shinji replied. "You never know unless you do."

(:ii:)

Asuka scowled as the person outside her door continued to ring the bell. She already knew who it was, but she had no idea why. Asuka pulled the door open and stared at the man on the other side. "What do you want?"

"Why, I'm fine, thanks," Joshua stated. "How are you Asuka?"

"What do you want?" Asuka hissed.

"To talk," Joshua stated.

"About what?" Asuka demanded.

"Not what, who," Joshua answered. "What is the Berserker doing in Tokyo-3?"

"He isn't in Tokyo-3," Asuka replied. "I killed him."

"I know he's there," Joshua stated, "and I know you wouldn't kill him, Asuka. Are you really going to let him escape you?"

"Don't think you know me," Asuka growled, "and don't you dare think I won't kill you just because I fucked you." Joshua didn't even bat an eye, further proof that he wasn't the man Asuka had known so long ago; a man whose shy, nervous ways had reminded her of another man.

"I do know you," he stated. "You are a sadistic bitch who wouldn't even be able to comprehend the concept of forgive and forget. Now, why are you covering for him?" Asuka was tempted to kill him, but despite her words, their history stayed her hand.

"The man you think is the Berserker, isn't," she stated. "I killed him. You're right though, I didn't want to. It was an accident. I went too far and he died." Joshua stared at her studiously. "I suggest you forget everything you've seen. SEELE wouldn't approve."

"My mistake then," Joshua replied. His lips turned upwards in a mockery of a smile. "I must say, it's been fun catching up, but I fear I must go." He turned and strolled back down to path leading from Asuka's home to the road. Asuka watched him until he promptly disappeared.

This had to be connected to what Ritsuko had done.

Asuka would have to act. The man she wanted so desperately was still somewhere inside Shinji Ikari, or so she hoped. Maybe, given enough time, he would make his grand reappearance. Until that day, she couldn't allow him to die.

Asuka closed her eyes and focused. She knew who she had to speak with. She felt the familiar tug of teleportation as she was whisked off to her destination.

(:ii:)

Joshua frowned as he stepped into his office. He had known something was off if the Berserker was still alive, but his meeting with Asuka had proved nothing. If anything, it only made this current problem more confusing.

The man he thought was the Berserker, wasn't? That was bullshit. Joshua had seen the Berserker many times and he would never forget that monster's face.

Her other words made more sense. He had made a few covert inquiries about the Berserker and had been, in no uncertain terms, told to drop it. He had a funny feeling that, if he had been less important, he'd be dead.

If it were anything else, Joshua would have dropped this whole situation like a hot potato. The only thing keeping him from doing so was the memory of his team.

They had been on a covert assassination mission, aimed at the angels' strategist. Unfortunately, the strategist was rarely seen without the Berserker. That fact would have scrubbed the mission, if they had known it before hand. Needless to say, the mission had ended in failure. Joshua, being the sanest member of the team, had managed to come out as the only survivor.

His team might have been a bunch of psychos and maniacs, but they were his psychos and maniacs.

(:ii:)

"I'm going to go take that shower now."

"Take your time," Shinji replied as he shoved his empty bowl of noodles back into its takeout bag. He heard the bathroom door shut and glanced up at the balcony door where a tall man in a tan jumpsuit stood. "What is with you people and showing up on the balcony?" Shinji climbed to his feet and pulled the door open. "Hi Al."

"Hey Boss," the man replied.

"Any particular reason you're here?" Shinji asked. "I'm pretty sure I told you to forget I ever existed."

"I tried," Al protested, "but I just had something kind of weird happen to me."

"And you decided it was necessary to find me and come out here to tell me?" Shinji asked.

"Well, considering Sohryu showed up in my bunker and told me to find you, yeah, it was kind of necessary." Shinji stared at the man for a moment before realizing his jaw was hanging open.

"Well," he began, "that is kind of weird."

"Yep."

"Tell me everything."

(:ii:)

Asuka looked around the cramped, poorly lit building and smiled. Getting into the Angel's bunker had been a bit more strain than she had thought. They had upped their security since the last CAS infiltration mission. If anybody but her had tried, they would have failed.

Asuka spotted the man she was looking for. He was hunched over a table, staring down at the map laid out across it. She took a single step and he spun. She barely had time to raise her AT field before the world's tenth most powerful angel loosened a blast that damn near broke her shield.

"Hold it Al!"

"Any particular reason I should?" Al asked, his voice not wavering despite the fact that he was facing the world's most powerful angel.

"If I was here to fight, I would have squashed you like a bug," Asuka stated. A nasty grin twisted Al's lips.

"Try it lady. You'll be coming with me." Asuka had to smile. She didn't doubt that he'd try. Al was well known for being just as crazy as his boss; and his boss, Shinji, was well known for being absolutely out of his mind. "What do you want?"

"I want you to go to Shinji. Tell him that he is in danger."

"From you?"

"No." Al stared at her.

"I suppose you know where he is, right?"

"Of course," Asuka stated.

"And what kind of danger is he in?"

"I think the CAS is coming for him."

"Oh dear."

(:ii:)

"CAS, huh?" Shinji asked. "Last I heard, SEELE just wanted to leave me alone."

"SEELE wasn't mentioned," Al stated. "I think we're looking at rogue elements."

"Always something," Shinji grumbled as he grabbed to cans of beer off the table and handed one to Al.

"You know, you and Sohryu have got one hell of a fucked up relationship," Al commented, "and I know fucked up relationships. I was married five times."

"I thought it was four," Shinji said. Al looked sheepish and held up his hand where a band of metal was wrapped around his ring finger. "Oh. Number five, eh?"

"Yep. I don't know what I was thinking when I said yes."

"She proposed?"

"You really think I'm looking to get married again after four divorces?" Al asked. "It's Amala, by the way."

"Oh. Pretty."

"Yeah. She's got a smart mouth too."

"Number five."

"Maybe not," Al protested. "I got along really well with one through four, at least at first. Maybe this one'll last."

"Maybe," Shinji replied. "So, CAS."

"Ah yes, back to sort of more pressing issues."

"Sort of?" Shinji asked.

"Well, more pressing to you," Al replied. "My marriage is pretty damn pressing to me." He sipped his beer. "I want to leave some guys here to watch you."

"You need all the people you have available," Shinji stated.

"We can spare a few."

"No you can't," Shinji argued, "especially not guys who would be strong enough to deal with really powerful CAS agents."

"I knew you'd argue," Al grumbled. He reached under his jacket and produced a large, black pistol. "Take this."

"I've never needed a gun before," Shinji stated, staring at the weapon in distaste.

"You always had more powerful alternatives," Al stated. "You don't know how to use a gun, do you?"

"Like you said, I've always had more powerful alternatives," Shinji stated. Al sighed in annoyance and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"What kind of soldier are you?"

"One who didn't want to be a soldier," Shinji stated. He heard the shower turn off. "Now get out of here, Al." Al's head cocked slightly.

"We have a second, she's blow drying her hair." He glanced back at Shinji. "And don't think I didn't notice Tits McGee hanging on your arm during lunch."

"Out," Shinji ordered, pointing over the edge of the balcony.

"Alright, boss. I'll see you around."

"One second," Shinji stated. "What is your last name?"

"Hancock," Al stated.

"What's your brother's first name?"

"Al," Al stated.

"Parents have early onset Alzheimer's?"

"He's Allan. I'm Albert," Al stated. "He's station somewhere around here, I think. You seen him?"

"Yeah."

"Say hi for me." Al turned away and promptly disappeared.

(:ii:)

Shinji collapsed back onto the couch and sipped his beer. He had thought everything was done with when Asuka told him that SEELE didn't want anything to do with him. He should have known better. Misato stepped out of the bathroom, still toweling her hair. "Something wrong?"

"Nope," Shinji replied. "Feeling better?"

"Much," Misato replied. Shinji stared blankly at the television. What the hell was he going to do? He couldn't put Misato in that kind of danger, but every time he thought of leaving, he remembered Misato's tear streaked face the day she had thought he left. Damn it. This was why he was a better figurehead than leader, he never could figure out the best option out of two bad options.

"Misato?"

"Yeah?"

"I was just talking to an old friend," Shinji stated. "He gave me some bad news." Misato stared at him, obviously curious as to how he had contacted his friend.

"Did something happen?" she ventured after a moment.

"No, but something might happen," Shinji stated. "I have enemies. They might be coming for me." They sat in silence for a long time as Misato absorbed that.

"Well," she began finally, "what do you think we should do?" Shinji glanced at Misato out of the corner of his eye.

"We?"

"Yes, we," Misato stated. "You aren't getting rid of me that easily, Ikari. I just got you back and I'm not giving you up again." Shinji had to laugh.

"I don't know what we should do," he stated.

"We should party!" Misato exclaimed suddenly.

"You're going to have to explain that one to me," Shinji admitted after a moment.

"Well, I've always thought that if you don't know what to do, you should party," Misato stated. Shinji stared at her owlishly. That sounded about right for her.

"I'm not much of a party guy," he said finally. Misato pushed herself up onto her knees and used her new height to push Shinji down onto the couch by his shoulders. "You really do like have me pinned."

"Yes I do," Misato replied with a smile as she kissed him. "As for the partying, well, if you don't want to, I can think of something else."

"Do tell."

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Alright folks, sorry for last week. It was a Cynical holiday. Which one? Well. . .it was. . .Killzone 2-mas. Okay, enough bullshit. I got Killzone 2 and just ran out of the time. Whoops. The game does kick ass though. I also got my own wireless now, instead of stealing the neighbors', so my PS3 is back online! My name there is Mister Cynical (shocking huh?) and I'm just getting back into the swing of things.

That of course leads to this week's rant: assholes on the internet. To be clear, I know I'm and asshole and I'm on the internet, but bear with me.

Now, I'm a believer in John Gabriel's Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory. In short, it says: average guy + anonymity + audience = fuckwad. Maybe this week's rant should be fuckwads on the internet. Yeah, that'll be less confusing.

As you all probably know, I've drawn much ire for giving my opinion of things, most notably DLP. As a whole, I mocked their writing abilities, their originality, and their treatment of patrons of the forums. This of course drew their rage and I received many unintentionally funny responses. They'll find where I live and beat me up. Right. If they knew where I lived, the worst they'd do is key my car. Which I would certainly shoot them for. You just don't fuck with a man's car.

Now, what I'm getting at here is that I'm the same way offline as I am on. Ask my friends. I will happily rant about the decaying state of the world without qualms. Now, would those kids threaten me the same way to my face? I'd say no. Of course, if you believe them, they're all six feet tall, a buck eighty of solid muscle, and have long, jet black hair. Right.

Oops. Riding them a little hard. Sorry again. What got this going were a few kids in a death match I was in. I'm not sure if people know this, but Bluetooth headsets make most people sound like irritating, prepubescent girls. Of course, most people who use them to talk during online matches are irritating, prepubescent boys. Now, do you really think those assholes would even come close to behaving the same way in person? I doubt it.

Sadly, Americans seem to lack cojones anymore. Keep in mind that I am American. Gone are the days where two guys would have a dispute, go in back of the bar, and beat the shit out of each other. Here are the days where two guys have a dispute, they both call their friends, somebody pulls a gun, and somebody gets shot in the back.

To make up for it, those same people instantly become the world's biggest badass in the one place where they are mostly beyond repercussion: the internet.

Of course, this cowardice has spread far and wide. I just live in America so I feel it more from there.

P.S. At least somebody got my damn gramar joke!

P.S.S. For the guys who send me e-mails outside of reviews, my e-mail has changed. It's at gmail. For everyone else, don't be afraid to fire me a message. Surprisingly, I love bullshitting. Bet that shocks the hell out of everyone.


	13. Chapter 13

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Thirteen

Misato stared at herself in the mirror and grinned. Two months of hard work had paid off. She hadn't had this body when she was in her twenties. "What the hell are you doing in there? Your food is getting cold!"

"Coming!" Misato called. She quickly finished drying her hair and walked out of the bathroom. Shinji glanced up at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Did you fall in?"

"Shut up." Misato sat and began eating. Shinji just shook his head and went back to eating. Some of the world's greatest mysteries, like what women did in the bathroom for hours at a time, were just never going to be solved. "I invited Ritsuko over for dinner."

"I'll have to go to the grocery store," Shinji commented. "What do you want?" Misato paused and thought about that. Shinji still hadn't quite remastered the art of Japanese cuisine.

"Steak!" Of course, Japanese cuisine was overrated anyway.

"Steak it is," Shinji replied. He stood and dumped his dishes in the sink. "Might as well go now."

(:ii:)

Shinji stepped out of the apartment and sighed in relief. Misato had taken to watching him closely since he had admitted that trouble might be brewing. It was kind of nice, until someone had started watching him. Shinji left the apartment building and ducked down an alleyway. "Come out now."

"Very well." A rather non-descript man stepped out of nowhere.

"Who the hell are you?" Shinji demanded. He had long ago learned to suspect the non-descript above all others.

"I am the Metatron."

"You don't look much like a giant robot that turns into a pistol," Shinji commented. The man's eyebrow ticked rather violently, though the rest of his face remained calm.

"That's Megatron," he stated. "I am rather disturbed by the number of people who make that mistake." Shinji smirked. Making an enemy angry wasn't always smart, but it was usually amusing.

"So, who the hell are you?"

"I am the voice of God."

"If I were Christian, I might care," Shinji stated.

"God is complicated," the Metatron stated. "Most religions have some truth to them, but none have the whole picture."

"What is the whole picture?" Shinji asked.

"The reason no religion knows the whole truth is that the truth is beyond human comprehension," the Metatron replied.

"Why the hell are you watching me?" Shinji demanded.

"Because I was told to," Metatron stated, his crimson eyes narrowing. "All I know is that trouble is coming."

"Trouble?" Shinji repeated with a grin. "Am I going to be causing this trouble?"

"I do not know," Metatron replied. "I was given my orders and it is not my place to question them." Shinji frowned. What with being one of the greatest mass murderers ever, he doubted God had any kind of positive interest in him.

"Some boss you've got," Shinji commented. "Stop watching me."

"I do not take my orders from you."

"Then tell your boss to get down here and talk to me itself," Shinji growled. He'd be damned if he allowed some celestial errand boy to watch over him.

"I'm afraid that would shatter your fragile perception of reality."

"My perception of reality is already fucked," Shinji pointed out bluntly.

"So I have seen," Metatron replied. With that he vanished. Shinji glared at the spot the man had occupied for a moment before allowing his eyes to drift upwards. He stared at the passing clouds for a moment.

"Fuck you."

(:ii:)

Ritsuko pushed the door open and glanced around the small apartment. "Hello?"

"Come on in!" Ritsuko pushed the door shut and set her shoes next to Shinji's and Misato's. The blond followed the delicious scent wafting through the air to the kitchen were Shinji was hard to work over a griddle set up on the stove.

"Steaks? Isn't that a little extravagant for a simple get together?"

"Lady of the house's request," Shinji replied as he turned and smiled at her. "How are you feeling Ritsuko?"

"Just fine." Ritsuko refused to admit how sore she was. Sick of Misato's taunts, the blond had finally signed up for a fitness program. It did feel good to get active again and it wasn't like she really did anything at NERV anyway.

"Just fine, huh?" Misato asked. "How's your jaw?"

"That was a lucky shot," Ritsuko gritted. "How's your ribs?" Misato's eyes narrowed and the two women glared at each other for a moment.

"Save it for the ring," Shinji cut in, thrusting a beer into each of their hands.

"Tomorrow?" Ritsuko ventured.

"Count on it," Misato replied. The two shook on it and Shinji was forced to pull them apart as they tried to break each others' hand.

"Damn you two are excitable." He turned back to the griddle and flipped his steaks. "I didn't have time for a marinade so I splurged a little on good cuts."

"Smells great," Ritsuko stated, leaning against his back and standing on her toes in order to peek over his shoulder at the steaks. She did so merely to examine the food of course. Pushing Misato's buttons had nothing to do with it.

"Stop teasing Misato," Shinji ordered.

"If you insist," Ritsuko replied, stepping back and smirking at her purple haired friend. Their relationship had taken a turn for the immature as of late and Ritsuko had to admit, it was rather fun. Misato led her to the couch and they both sat rather heavily. "How have things been?"

"They've been really great," Misato stated happily. "I'm really happy Ritsuko. For a while, I never pictured my life ending up like this."

"That's great."

"I noticed you've been hanging out with Hancock a lot," Misato commented.

"We smokers have to stick together," Ritsuko replied.

"Sure," Misato replied teasingly. Ritsuko opened her beer and took a long drink to avoid having to say something.

(:ii:)

Asuka looked around the building top she had teleported to and spotted the man she was searching for. "What the hell do you think you're doing Joshua?"

"That's him, Asuka," Joshua stated, staring at the building across the street.

"I told you, that's not him," Asuka replied firmly.

"Look at him," Joshua growled, turning to stare at Asuka. "How can you tell me that isn't him? I have spent months investigating this mess."

"And you've been told to stop," Asuka commented. "SEELE isn't going to allow this behavior much longer. You are one of their best CAS leaders, but you are testing their patience."

"He killed my men."

"Those monsters they put you in charge of?" Asuka asked. "I'd hardly call those things men."

"Monsters or not, they were mine," Joshua stated. "They trusted me and looked to me for leadership."

"Of course they did," Asuka replied, "that's what the lobotomies were for. The more power they have, the crazier they get. You can't have powerful crazies running around unchecked, so a few snips here and there and they trust whoever they're told to trust."

"I don't know why I expected you to understand." Joshua turned back to the building. "Why does he live when so many have died?"

"Maybe he deserves to live happily ever after."

"If anyone here deserves to die, it's. . ."

"Me," Asuka interrupted. Joshua studied her carefully out of the corner of his eye. "I'm the reason this whole thing started. If anyone here should die, it should be me. Problem is, I don't want to die and no one is strong enough to kill me."

"Is that why you're protecting him?" he asked. "You pity him?"

"I feel a lot of things for him, but not pity," Asuka replied. "The man you see there was once the Berserker, but no longer."

"What happened to change him?" Joshua asked.

"I did," Asuka answered.

"So, what? You're telling me that he's a split personality and the guy in there is just an innocent?" Joshua demanded.

"No. The man in there is just a burned out husk. He doesn't want to fight. He doesn't want to kill. He just wants to sit there and play house." Asuka tried to swallow the lump in her throat. "Use your head. This is over. Go back to Europe and start fighting the angels again."

(:ii:)

Joshua took a deep breath and sat down in his office chair. There was a message waiting for him on his computer. He didn't even have to open it. He knew it was from Management, telling him to drop his informal investigation.

Joshua pushed back in his chair and stared out the window behind his desk. That was just in time to see the window shatter. Fortunately, Joshua had never been one to let down his guard, or his AT field for that matter.

The bullet careened on the orange hexagon and Joshua was already moving before the slug slapped into the wall beside him. He reappeared behind the sniper and kicked the man's rifle away.

"You're stronger than they said," the man sputtered.

"I like playing my cards close to my vest," Joshua stated. "So, SEELE has decided to end me."

"Don't even act surprised," the man stated. "Don't break that rifle. It's my favorite." Joshua glanced down at the weapon.

"It's Soviet. You can get another in Africa for twenty bucks."

"I like that one," the man stated, "it's lucky. It never misses."

"It just did."

"Did not," the sniper protested. "I don't miss and neither does my rifle. What happens after the bullet is in the air is not my fault. I can't exactly control what you freaks do. That kid has gotten you in a mess of trouble."

"Kid?" Joshua pressed. "Harris."

"He was on my team," the sniper stated.

"Was?" Joshua repeated. "They killed him."

"Yeah. Kind of weak giving me the job, but I'm the best." The sniper stared at him for a while. "You might as well cap yourself, pal. Once SEELE wants you dead, you're going to die."

"I know," Joshua raised his hand and collapsed the man's AT field. "I have something to do before then." He tossed the rifle to the side. He was a dead man walking, might as well not have it be in vain.

(:ii:)

"You've been quiet." Shinji glanced down at the woman leaning against his side.

"You and Ritsuko have been gossiping and teasing each other so much I couldn't get a word in edgewise."

"We weren't that bad," Misato protested, "and it's not like you ever want to get a word in."

"I suppose," Shinji allowed. "I've just got a funny feeling."

"Do tell."

"Just feel like someone's talking about me," Shinji replied. "Of course, it could just be you two."

"We were not talking about you," Misato protested.

"We were in the same room," Shinji commented drolly, "and I'm not deaf. You two were giggling loud enough to wake the dead." He leaned back into the couch and stared at the television without even seeing it. Something was happening. "Move!" Shinji shoved Misato hard and rolled to the opposite side as an energy blast cleaved clean through the couch. Shinji rolled to his feet and came up facing a dark-haired man. "Who the hell are you?"

"Damn it," the man growled. "I was hoping to end this quickly, but I should have known you wouldn't be easy to sneak up on."

"Misato?"

"I'm okay," the purple haired woman. She stated at the man. "Friend of yours?"

"Not that I know," Shinji stated, "of course, I have my fair share of enemies."

"I am Joshua," the man stated. "I'm going to kill you."

"Aren't you going to tell me it's nothing personal?" Shinji asked, glancing around for any opportunities he could get his hands on.

"I would, but it's quite personal."

"Oh."

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Been a while since I did an out and out cliffhanger. I feel like a dick. Heh.

Alright, comments, gripes, and complaints. I've got Boomerang now. The channel, not the toy. It kicks much ass. I've been watching Herculoids, Charlie Chan and the Chan Clan, Johnny Quest, and a whole bunch of shows I never thought I'd see again.

I just wish they had the Real Adventures of Johnny Quest or the Godzilla cartoon, the one with Godzooky. I get the darndest feeling you people have no idea what the hell I'm talking about.

In other news, I picked up a job as a life guard. That's right, sink or swim you little boogers. It's natural selection.


	14. Chapter 14

I don't own anything.

Angel Eyes

-Chapter Fourteen

Shinji stared at the man before him as his brain ran through a number of possibilities. "So, are you going to tell me what I did?" It never hurt to buy time.

"What haven't you done?" the man asked blandly.

"Touché," Shinji admitted. "You know, last I heard, SEELE considered me no longer a problem."

"I'm not here from SEELE," the man stated. "I'm here of my own volition."

"You don't strike me as the kind who's doing this out of your desire to see a better world," Shinji stated. "I hurt you, didn't I?" The man's eyes narrowed. "No? Then someone close to you, right?"

"Actually, it was a whole team." That gave Shinji pause. The man was obviously a fake angel and not a real one, so CAS? When had he wiped out a whole CAS team personally? Oh.

"You know, I could have sworn that I killed you."

"No, just all my men," the man spat.

"To be fare, you were trying to kill my right hand man," Shinji pointed out. "Joshua, yes?" He remembered that assassination mission aimed at Al. SEELE had sent their most powerful and Shinji had killed them all with barely any effort. "Those things weren't really men."

"They were my men!" Joshua snarled. Neither of them saw Misato slip into her room and come out firing. "Bitch!" Shinji could feel the man's AT field roar to life as the bullet's ricocheted wildly.

"Quit shooting!" he snapped as a round whizzed by his ear. Shinji's mind was working even as his body acted. Joshua was strong, much stronger than he should have been, but it still took too much focus to create a bullet-proof AT field. He didn't see Shinji pick up one of the halves of the couch until said furniture hit him hard enough to send him slamming into the wall.

"Shinji?"

"Stay there!" Shinji snapped. The best way to fight an angel was to keep them from focusing. Shinji had learned that from a human. Of course, that man had been killed, by an angel. Shinji pounced on the dazed CAS agent and promptly began pummeling him. Hopefully a semi-decent ass kicking would keep him from focusing long enough for Shinji to kill him the old fashioned way.

(:ii:)

Misato watched in shock as her boyfriend attempted to beat the other man's face into the floorboards. "Shinji?"

"Stay there!" Shinji snarled again. A particularly hard blow sent Joshua's head snapping to the side and a spray of blue across the floor. Misato took an unconscious step back as she realized what that meant. The man was an angel. Well, that explained her overly poor shooting.

"Shinji, get out of the way!" Misato ordered as she raised her old USP again. Shinji glanced up, his attention diverted apparently just long enough for the other man to gather his wits.

In a flash, Shinji was flying across the apartment and slammed into the far wall hard. Misato fired twice and cursed as the rounds snapped off an orange hexagon. Joshua carefully sat up and spat out a mouthful of blue blood.

"I forgot how quick you are," he stated.

"Actually, I've slowed down recently," Shinji gritted as he clutched his left shoulder.

"Why am I still alive?" Joshua demanded. "I should be dead. You're the most powerful one in existence."

"I've gotten tired of murder," Shinji bluffed. "What do you say we let bygones be bygones?"

"You wouldn't get tired of murder," Joshua spat. "Asuka said you were burned out."

"She was right," Shinji stated.

"She was lying," Joshua corrected. "I know her. I know when she's lying. What are you hiding, Berserker?" Shinji chuckled even as he heard Misato gasp.

"Well, I was hiding that," he stated. "I guess that's the end of this vacation." He stared at Joshua and smirked. "Get out of here kid, before I take your apart piece by piece, just like your team."

"Shinji?" Misato ventured hesitantly.

"You're bluffing." Shinji paused and glanced at Joshua with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm bluffing?" he asked. "I'm the Berserker, you stupid fuck! I've personally killed thousands! I don't need to bluff!"

(:ii:)

Asuka had to smile as she listened to Shinji. He certainly could bluff when he needed to. He sounded so much like her Berserker that it made her heart ache. "Alright," she stated as she stepped forward and drew the attention of every person in the room, "I think that's enough." Her AT field rose. Joshua tried to match her for a split second before she casually tore his own field apart and turned him into an orange smear. "How's your arm Shinji?"

"Just perfect," Shinji gritted as he clutched his arm and sank to the floor. "You waiting for anything specific before you stepped in? You've been here since Misato started shooting."

"You always did know when I was around," Asuka commented. She moved to him and kneeled at his side. "You want a gag?" The annoyed looked Shinji shot at her answered that question. She seized his arm and rotated it harshly. Shinji's whole body tightened and the veins on his forehead and neck stood out in stark contrast, but he didn't make a sound. "I'd suggest a sling."

"Is that your official suggestion Doctor Sohryu?" Shinji growled.

"Yes it is," Asuka replied and she sat beside him. "I should have squashed that bug the first time he came to me." She glanced up and smiled at Misato. "Well, hello Katsuragi. You're looking rather horrified." Asuka felt Shinji's body tense again.

"Asuka?" Misato asked, sounding rather dazed.

"That's right," Asuka stated.

"What do I have to do to get rid of you?" Shinji asked as he touched his lip. His fingertips came away crimson. Asuka felt her stomach sink as she stared at his blood. She gently took hold of his hand and curled his fingers into a fist, hiding the offensive color from her sight. "I told you."

"I know," Asuka replied. She forced a smile. "You would have killed him if you could. You've never been stupid enough to just give up your like without a real fight." Shinji's lips curled slightly. "Did you bite your tongue?"

"Yeah," he admitted. He seemed to have trouble keeping his eyes open. "I'm tired."

"The adrenaline is wearing off," Asuka replied.

"Haven't felt this in a long time." His eyes slid shut and he slid to the side, come to a rest with his head on Asuka's shoulder.

"Shinji?" Misato ventured.

"He's fine," Asuka replied.

"He's really. . ."

"Oh, yes," Asuka interrupted. "Ask him. He's not ashamed. Even now he's proud of what he's done." Asuka leaned back against the wall and glanced at Shinji out of the corner of her eye.

"Who was that?" Misato asked after a second.

"Just some insect," Asuka replied. "My Shinji would have killed him without blinking. Hell, he almost did it once. That's what this is all about."

(:ii:)

Misato watched as Shinji lay sprawled across her couch. He had been unconscious for nearly four hours now. Only Asuka's assurances had kept her from calling an ambulance. Shinji jerked upright suddenly and nearly sent Misato tumbling out of her chair in shock. "Asuka!"

"She's gone," Misato stated. Shinji stared at her for a moment before he took a deep breath and lay back on the couch, cradling his left arm.

"Oh," he stated. He ran his right hand through his hair and paused as he noted the dry blue blood splattered across his knuckles. "So fucking weak."

"You could have killed him easily before, right?" Misato asked quietly. Shinji snorted humorlessly.

"I wouldn't say easily," he commented. "I'd go with casually. He was a lot stronger than he should have been. His abilities were beyond Second Sphere, probably a low Throne, but it still wouldn't have been a problem for me."

"I thought the CAS didn't have anyone above a Dominion," Misato commented.

"They do," Shinji replied, "but once they get into the First Sphere, they go a little crazy."

"How crazy?" Misato asked.

"Crazy enough that they're usually lobotomized," Shinji answered. "Joshua managed to hold himself together pretty decently."

"You are the most powerful, right?"

"I was," Shinji answered. "There are only two Seraphim Angels. I've always had more raw power, but Asuka's always had more control."

"Why?"

"My powers weren't my own," Shinji explained. "They belonged to Rei. She gave them to me before she died."

"Is that why you did it, Shinji?" Misato asked. "Is it all because of Rei?"

"Maybe at first," Shinji admitted. "After that, I did it because I wanted to." Misato stared down at him for a while. He led a war because he wanted to? That couldn't be right. Shinji sat up again and climbed to his feet. "I'll make this easy on both of us. Good bye Misato." Misato caught his wrist as he walked by.

"You promised you wouldn't leave."

"I promised I wouldn't leave until you asked," Shinji corrected. He tried to pull away, but Misato held him fast. She pushed herself to her feet.

"I haven't asked you to leave," Misato stated firmly. "What would you do if you got your powers back? Would you run back to Europe?" Shinji looked away from her as if considering the question.

"I don't know," he stated after several long moments.

"What about before?"

"In a heartbeat." Shinji turned to look down at her. "Just so you know, I'm not repentant. Given the choice, I'd do it all over again."

"I didn't ask that." Shinji's blue eye stared at her with a focus that was almost frightening. "I want you to stay with me."

"Why?"

"Because I love you, you jack ass," Misato stated. "I told you already."

"You have lousy tastes in men," Shinji stated, the corners of his lips tweaking upwards slightly.

"Obviously," Misato agreed before wrapping his arms around his neck and pulling him down so she could kiss him.

(:ii:)

Shinji stared out the window and quietly sipped his beer. Misato led out a grumble and he glanced back to see the woman tossing in bed. She latched onto a pillow and settled back down. Shinji turned back to the window. "So, what did They say?"

"They're pissed," Asuka answered as she moved to stand by his side. Shinji handed her a beer and she happily opened it. "People aren't supposed to be able to hide things from SEELE, especially not members of the CAS."

"What are They going to do?" Shinji asked.

"They're going to tear apart the CAS and have it reexamined," Asuka answered as she sipped her beer. "How's your arm?"

"It hurts," Shinji answered. "What about Joshua?"

"What about him?" Asuka asked. "He went against SEELE. That doesn't even need a cover story."

"I see." They stood in silence for a while, drinking their beers and watching the world go by.

"It really is over, isn't it?" Asuka asked suddenly.

"Yes, it is," Shinji answered.

"You have to believe me, I didn't mean to end it," Asuka stated, glancing over at him.

"Hmm." Shinji just sipped his beer.

"God, you're such a bastard, Shinji."

"I am what you made me."

"Now I'm flattered," Asuka replied. "I'll see you around, Shinji."

"Don't know why you would." Asuka stared at him again for a long moment, looking like she wanted to say more, before she simply disappeared. Shinji finished his beer and carefully raised his left arm. There wasn't even a twinge of pain.

"Shinji?" Shinji turned, quickly letting his arm drop and smiled as he saw Misato sitting up in bed, not bothering to hide her naked form from his eyes. "What are you doing?"

"Just getting a drink," Shinji replied as he held up his empty beer can.

"All done?" she asked.

"Yep."

"Good. Get over here." Shinji smiled and set down the can before climbing back into bed. Misato immediately climbed on top of him and pinned his shoulders.

"You know, you don't always have to pin me down. I'm not going anywhere."

"I know," Misato replied. "I just like having you pinned." She snuggled into his chest and Shinji wrapped his arms around his waist. "Love you."

"Love you too, Misato."

-End

(:ii:)

-Author's notes. Yo. Long time no gripe. If it makes you guys happy, I wasn't just chilling last weekend. It all started with a bus breaking down Thursday night. We got exactly three hundred feet from my reserve station before the cab was so filled with smoke that even hardened chain smokers such as the Marines of my unit were coughing.

That led to a multiple hour wait for another bus. I can tell you, catnapping in full combat gear is not fun. At about two in the morning of Friday, we got bored. Needless to say, I stopped trying to sleep after that. We got to Fort Dix at four, woke at six, and were on the range by eight or so. Of course there was a torrential down poor that higher powers in dryer places tried to ignore. It was almost a relief when lightning struck.

The next day was windy. Okay, understatement. The wind could have carried off a small child. It almost took one of our Marines, good thing she had body armor on. It kept her from being blown over the burm like some of our targets.

Alright, now back to the story. This one is done folks. I just felt that this was the best place to end it. Does this mean this is the last we've heard of the Berserker? Fuck no. I had a lot more planned for this story, but I realized that if I just kept going with a second arc instead of a second story, this thing would probably end up huge. I don't like huge stories, I think they're intimidating to new readers.

So, even though this is obviously the first of probably two stories, what did you think? I like the way it turned out personally. I'd even go so far as to call this a success. It's definitely a departure from my previous works and it's still a good story.

P.S. I told you guys I'd make it up to you for missing so many updates. Now, listen up because I'm going to be real subtle. Before the month is out, the Naruto section is going to have a new story, a story I do believe you guys will actually like.


End file.
